Dark Days: A World In Ruins
by TiredOfBeingNice
Summary: Ethan, Sarah, Benny, Erica, Rory and Jesse survive the blast of the Lucifractor. But everything goes downhill when Stern absorbs the Lucifractor and giant mutant monsters roam Whitechapel, ready to destroy anything in their way. The events force the gang has to suit up and stop this apocalypse before it is too late. Collaboration w/ MBAV fan66!
1. The Explosion

**A/N- Wassup? It is TOBN here with the new collaboration story me and MBAV fan66 are writing! Eek! I AM SO EXCITED!**

**So the two of us have been chatting about this little story that will consist of maybe 10 chapters or so. I am excited, so let us get this thing started!**

**This is sorta like Season 3, but not really. And I know I was planning to do Apocalyptic Friends (Season 9 of the Friends Series...I think. Check my profile!), but I couldn't help but decide to write this one. I knew I couldn't do it alone, so I pulled in my fanfic buddy so we could write this and still finish it in time! Yay for us! Jokes! **

**Hope you read the summary because I ain't gonna explain myself again!**

**Drop a review and start reading!**

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By TiredOfBeingNice and MBAV fan66 (Duh!)

Chapter 1: The Explosion

* * *

Stern continued to absorb the Lucifractor as the Council building started to crumble beneath the four people. Suddenly, two people burst through the doors.

"Rory! Erica!" Benny exclaimed as he dazedly ran to the two vampires, scars on their faces that took their time healing. "What happened?" Sarah asked nervously. Erica panted, not being able to take the weariness as she almost collapsed. Benny held on to her as Rory gasped.

"The whole town is collapsing. It is totally...horrific." He concluded. Jesse ran his fingers through his hair.

"No time for a reunion! We have to get out of here before something happens to all of us and KILLS US!" He yelled among the smoke and the noise. Everyone nodded as they started to run to the door. But Benny saw the Lucifractor, eyes drawn to what he could have. What power he could possess. Stern shot him a sickening grin.

"Window shopping Mr. Weir? I can assure you that this would be a great way to show your...awesomeness." He said, rolling the word 'awesomeness' with great sarcasm. Benny had a lump in his throat as Erica nudged him.

"Benny! Hurry up! This whole thing is gonna explode!" But Benny stood there, eyes glued on the purple orb. Benny was grounded to his feet as he said nothing back to the blonde vampire. Erica this time spun him by the shoulder and scolded him.

"What is the hold up Benny? Snap out of it; that thing will kill me and you!" This remark made Benny come to his senses and along with Erica, he sped out of the Caller room as he followed his friends.

"I can feel the immense power! NOTHING WILL EVER STOP ME NOW!" Stern roared, his voice echoing the building. Ethan, Sarah, Jesse, Erica, Benny and Rory finally made it out of the Council building as Whitechapel began to rumble beneath its surface. All around them people screamed and buildings started to crumple down. Ethan watched in terror as he saw the one town he ever knew getting demolished in front of his very eyes.

"Everyone in here!" Rory cried out as they found some sort of gap in a building. They all crawled in it and squeezed together. Ethan's heart raced as Sarah slowly started to cry. Ethan cradled her tightly as everyone grasped hands.

"W-What is happening Ethan?" She whimpered. Ethan was about to respond with some words of care and logic when he stopped himself. He didn't want to lie to all of them with some phoney words. He sighed.

"I don't know." She said fearfully.

The six huddled closely, tight in the small gap of the building as the only town they ever knew crumbled into pieces. Benny suddenly remembered something and then began to quickly mumble somthing under his breath that the others didn't hear. Ripples of purple spread through the building's gap as the whole gang felt noises beneath them.

"Everyone brace yourselves!" Jesse yelled among the noise as they leaned in close. The gap started to close in with rocks as the gang was engulfed in darkness.

* * *

Ethan wearily opened his eyes to be greeted with more darkness. A low groan emitted from his mouth as he sighed, rubbing his head.

"Guys? You up? Guys?" He whispered as he heard a small whimper in the dark.

"Yeah, I am pretty sure we are all here." Rory said in a small, quiet voice that Ethan never quite heard before. Ethan took a heavy breath as he looked around, his back seriously starting to hurt.

"Benny? Guys I can feel everyone but Benny. Where is he?" The whole gang in darkness felt around for the spellmaster before Erica gasped.

"He's here! I think he is still sleeping." She whispered. Ethan, his eyes slowly adjusting to the dark, rubbed Benny's shoulder.

"B! Wake up!" A small quiet moan was heard in the background as Benny's voice piped up.

"G-Guys? I-I feel really nauseous right now.." He moaned. Erica gagged.

"You better not barf on me nerd." She growled. Benny could be seen faintly shaking his head.

"I don't think I am nauseous that I am gonna barf. I am nauseous because I am sensing a lot of magic. Actually, way too much magic." He groaned. Ethan nodded.

"Okay? So what does that mean?" Jesse said nervously. Benny sighed.

"That means there is something magical outside. And by magical, I mean dark magical. Someone open up this place because I think Rory is squeezing up my butt." He said with annoyance,

"Hey!" Rory protested as Sarah, Erica and Jesse scooted towards what seemed like a rock. They tried pushing it with all the strength they had, but it didn't budge. Sarah sighed.

"It is too heavy. We are stuck unless we find a escape route." Sarah concluded. Ethan felt around when he was met with a smooth feeling.

"Guys! Guys there is glass right here. We are in a gap in a building. We can break the glass and get out!" Ethan informed. Benny took no thoughts as he smashed the glass. Of course, he didn't remember that glass was very sharp, so he yelped in pain as he started to cry. Blood streamed from his fist as Erica removed her sweater and pressed it firmly, but gently against the wound. Benny whimpered.

"Worst idea ever." He sighed as Erica carefully pulled out pieces of glass from Benny's hand. As Erica aided Benny, Rory crawled through the open entrance, his eyes widened as with everyone else.

"What? What is it?" Erica said fearfully.

"You look for yourself." Ethan said. Erica and Benny crawled out with the rest as they gasped.

Through a broken glass building, there was smoke all around them. Bits of rocks and glass scattered everywhere as there were knocked down in one swift kick. But what caught everyone's eyes were monsters, their eyes blood red as the crawled through the city. They were scaly and green, some flying and some sticking to different buildings. But everyone knew that each one was as deadly as the rest.

"This..this was the Lucifractor's makings. It released monsters, and their blood red eyes should be purple. Which means only one thing..." Suddenly, a cackle rung from the buildings' rooftops. The gang all looked up.

"Oh...my...gosh." Jesse said in disbelief.

"YOU CALLED THIS FORWARD!" Stern yelled, eyes glowing purple as he held the orb closely. He rose it up high as he grinned evilly.

"SAY HELLO TO THE END OF WHITECHAPEL! THEN SOON, THE WORLD!" He cackled.

"What is happening Ethan? What does he mean?" Erica said nervously. Ethan narrowed his eyes as he groaned.

"Stern. He just declared World War III"

* * *

**A/N- Well I am done here! Sorry for such a short chapter; this is a prologue after all. I am sure MBAV fan66 is gonna bring a great chapter 2. **

**Anyway, I hope you like it! We have some interesting things in store. Hope y'all are excited! Make sure to drop a review too!**

**TOBN out!**

**In Fangs, We Trust**


	2. An Explaination To The Parents

**A/N: Hey there everybody! It's me MBAV fan66! And as you know I'm working with TiredOfBeingNice on this story! Yaaaay! Lol! And now it's my turn!**

**TOBN did a great job on the prologue chapter, huh? I just hope that I can keep up! Lol! You might notice some slight differences in writing styles as every author has their own unique way in writing. So, I'm gonna try and make it as similar to my fanfic buddy, TOBN as best as I can, but no promises and no haters either! Lol!**

**Now! On with chapter 2! And don't forget to review! We greatly appreciate it! Lol!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: TiredOfBeingNice and MBAV fan66 (that's me! lol)

Chapter 2: An Explanation To The Parents

* * *

After Stern had just declared World War III, he vanished in puff of purple smoke and an evil laugh to follow.

"Now what?"asked Rory looking back at everyone. No one really knew what to do. They we're all still in shock from Stern declaring war on them and the entire world.

With a heavy sigh Ethan was the one to answer his question. "There's not much else we can do, but to regroup to figure out how to defeat Stern once and for all."

"Are you nuts?! Those...things out there look extremely dangerous and really powerful! Plus, not to mention Stern is super powerful himself now that he has absorbed the Lucifractor!"exclaimed Jesse in disbelief. "How are we suppose to go up against someone like that?!"

"Well, it's our only option if we want to survive and protect our families and everyone else in the world!" Ethan said, raising his voice at the elder vampire. The two were about to get into it until Sarah stepped in and stopped them.

"Guys!"she said in a harsh tone. "All this bickering isn't going to help us! We need to stay calm and come up with a plan of action."she said looking between the two.

"She's right! We need to figure out what our next move is going to be."agreed Ethan. Jesse nodded his head in agreement.

"Wait a minute? How are we even still alive anyways? I thought that one of purposes of the Lucifractor is to drain the dark energy from vampires and thus killing them? That shock wave that it released should of killed us."asked Erica with her arms crossed and a questioning brow raised.

Benny then piped in with an explanation for that. "Oh! Well, just before it hit us I suddenly remembered about that. And I quickly casted a protection spell over us so it wouldn't kill you guys."

"Good job Benny!"praised Rory happily to him and raising his hand for a high five. Benny couldn't help but place a big smile on his face and high fived Rory back.

"Ok! So, what now? We can't just stay here. It's obviously not safe here with all these monsters roaming around under Stern's control."asked Sarah.

Ethan placed a hand under his chin and was in deep thought until he came up with an answer. "We need to find somewhere safe first. And then we need to find weapons to defend ourselves from these monsters. No telling what these things are capable of."

"Actually...I think I might be able to help with the safe house part."piped Erica. Everyone turned to look at her, waiting on her reply. "My great grandfather on my dad's side, was a very paranoid man. He spent a lot of time and money in building an underground bunker, out on some property of his in the woods somewhere."

"That's excellent! Then let's go!"urged Benny happily and ready to go, but was then shot down once she spoke again.

"Except I have no idea where it's located at and it's been locked up for years."

"Dang it!"whined Benny, stomping his foot like a little kid toughing a tantrum.

"Does your dad know?"asked Rory. Erica gave it some thought. "Actually...yeah. I think he might know something about it! I remember him telling me that after he died, he had passed the key and a map to the bunker to his son, who then passed it down his son, and then finally to my dad. I'll have to ask him about it to see if he remembers anything about it and if he still has the key and map."she explained.

"Great!"exclaimed Ethan happily. "It's probably best if we all split up and go home anyways. After seeing the amount of destruction that the blast caused, we should probably go and see if our families are all ok."suggested Ethan.

"And then what? You can't just leave them there in an unsafe environment."added Jesse with a bit of scoff at Ethan's suggestion.

"He's right!"agreed Erica. "Then I guess we all meet back up somewhere and bring them with us. I think it's about time we finally let them in on all of the supernatural stuff that's been happening right under their noses and about us. After today, there's no way we can cover this one up."said Ethan with a sigh.

"But where are we gonna meet up at?"wondered Rory. "How about at my place? You all already know where I live at. So, we can just go from there to the bunker."recommended Benny. Everyone nodded in agreement and then split up.

* * *

Rory was quickly speeding through town, towards his house when he heard a cry for help. He tracked the noise to a building that had collapsed. There under the rubble was a girl, but he couldn't quite make out her appearance under the rubble.

"Hello? Is anybody there?"called out the girl.

"Don't worry! I'm gonna get you out of there!"replied Rory back reassuringly to her. He lifted up the heavy piece of rubble with his vampire strength, not even thinking about what he was doing. All he was focused on at the moment was the poor girl's safety and getting her out.

Once the large piece was removed, he helped the girl out of her confinement. She dusted herself off and looked up at him. Rory was struck in awe at what he saw. She had fiery red straight hair, that was a bit wavy near the ends. Her skin tone was slightly pale looking. And she had baby blue eyes that seemed to sparkle with a bit of mischief in them. All he did was stare at her.

The girl waved a hand in front of his face and them punched him in the arm when he didn't respond. "Ow!"he cried out, rubbing his arm and looking at her. "Is that anyway to treat the guy who just saved your life?!"asked Rory, still rubbing his arm and pouting.

The girl rolled her eyes. "Well, I did just try to say thank you, but it seemed that your mind was elsewhere. Plus, the staring was starting to get creepy."she answered. "Oh. Sorry about that."he apologized bashfully.

"Eh. Whatever?"she shrugged nonchalantly. "The name's Stella! Stella Marie Burner!"she greeted, holding out a hand to shake. Rory took her hand and shook it while slightly blushing. "Rory! Rory Keaner!"he greeted back, flashing a big happy smile at her.

"Cool name! I like it!"smiled Stella. "So, how did you manage to lift something so heavy anyways? Are you like Superman or something?"she asked, giggling that last part. Rory's smile then fell to a frown and a look of nervousness came about him.

"Uh...well...uh...you see..."he stammered for a bit before taking a deep breath and telling her that he'll explain if she doesn't mind following him to his place first. "This better not be some kind of trick just to force me into bed with you."Stella told him sternly. Rory's expression was shock and he quickly shook his head saying no repeatedly.

Stella started laughing. "I was just kidding! Geez! Relax!"she chuckled. "I trust you. If you can't trust the one who saves your life, then who can you trust?"she joked. Rory smiled at her and the two left.

* * *

When Erica finally reached her house, she was shocked to still see it standing somewhat. Parts of the house were in shambles, but it didn't sustain too much damage from the blast.

"Mom?! Dad?!"called out Erica. "Erica? Is that you?"said a male voice. "Over here, sweetie!"called a feminine one. Erica quickly ran over towards were she heard the voices coming from.

She ran downstairs in the basement and found her parents standing there. They ran towards each other and embraced each other in a hug. "I'm so glad that you guys are alright!"sniffled Erica, trying to hold back tears. "Us too, honey!"replied her mother back.

They all broke the hug and Mrs. Jones gave her daughter a confused and worried look. "What was that explosion about just now? And that weird purple light that accompanied it?"

Erica bit her lip in nervousness. She really didn't want to have to all this to them, but she had no choice now. Thanks to Stern, the once secret doors about the supernatural community ever being real have now officially been blown wide open. And there was no covering this mess up now.

"Mom. Dad. I have something to tell you. You're probably gonna think I'm nuts or have been watching and reading way too much Dusk novels and movies, but I reassure you. It's all real."

Mr. and Mrs. Jones gave each other a confused look before looking back at their daughter. Erica sighed and began her explanation. "I'm a vampire! And yes they are real. Me and Sarah are both vampires. We have been for some time now. And three other of...well more like Sarah's friends than mine, are also...different. One is a vampire like us and one is a spellmaster and can do real actual magic. And another is a seer, who basically is someone that gets visions through touch."she paused nervously to catch her parents reaction.

They both were stunned and shocked at first, but then started to laugh. "Oh Erica, dear! You're right! We do think you've been watching and reading too much Dusk because now you think it's all real."laughed her father.

Erica let out a frustrated groan. Of course they wouldn't believe her. So, she had no choice, but to give them proof. She hissed at them, extending her fangs. Her parents jumped back in fear and her mother almost fainted at the sight of her once innocent baby girl now a blood thirsty creature of the night. Erica expected this would happen and rolled her eyes.

"B-but how?!"stuttered Mr. Jones in fear. Then that fear turned into one of anger. "You better explain young lady!"he demanded.

Sighing again, she started the long and tedious explanation of how she went from geek to hot vampire plus all of the crazy supernatural adventures that she's experienced over the past months. When she was finally done, they stood there with their mouths open. And this time Mrs. Jones did faint. Luckily, Mr. Jones managed to catch her. She quickly recovered and stood back up.

"I can't believe you, Erica Jones! You've been doing all this behind our backs?! You are ground young lady!"scolded Mr. Jones, who obviously wasn't to frighten of the fact that his daughter was a vampire who could just retaliate back by draining him dry of his blood.

Erica's mouth dropped. "Seriously?!"she commented in shock and disblief. She couldn't believe that she was getting ground over this. But then she quickly shood her head remembering her reason for being there. "Nevermind that right now! Dad? Do you remember that bunker that you told me about when I was seven that great grandfather built out in the woods somewhere?"

Her father thought about it for a minute. "Yeah! What about it?"he asked. "Well now that it's basically World War III out there and there's these ugly and deadly monsters running around everywhere, it's not safe to stay here. I told my friends about the bunker and we agreed that it would probably be more safer there than here in town."said Erica. "Do you still have the key and map showing it's location?"she asked looking at her father.

"Yeah! In fact, I think that I stored it down here somewhere."he replied walking over to a shelf and removing an old box from it. He rummaged around inside it for a bit and found what he was looking for. He pulled out an old piece of paper that was rolled up and tied with a string. From the string hung an old looking antique key. He hand them to Erica. "Here! This is it. The map and key that's been handed down throughout the generations.

Erica took the rolled up map with the attached key and smiled. She gave her dad a hug to thank him. After which, they decided to leave and head to Benny's grandma's place. "Come on! Let's get out of here."

* * *

On the way to Rory's, he learned quite a bit about Stella like that she was born right here in Whitechapel and was year older than him. She had told him that her father had left when he found out that her mother was pregnant with her and how she was really close with her mom because of it. He also learned that when Stella was eight, her mother had grew terribly ill and then passed away. Stella had told him that ever since her mother's death, she just didn't feel like she belong anywhere because of the bullying that she had to deal with from the other kids in the orphanage, and as a result she stopped being the shy sweet girl that she once was and decided to toughen up some, which led to her becoming more of a runaway and a loner.

Rory could also tell that by the way she acted, she seemed to be a bit more of a tomboy than a girlie girl, but she still seemed to maintain a bit of that girlie aspect though. Rory was fascinated by this girl. As they walked and talked he also told somethings about himself as well and it turns out that they have a few things in common like they both love video games and action movies.

Eventually, they reached Rory's house. The house was like half caved in, but luckily he's parents made it out alright. Rory then started the long explanation about him being a vampire, and about the supernatural being real, and about what was currently going on now. And of course they didn't believe him because they knew how imaginative their son's mine could get and how gullible he can be at times too.

Just then Rory saw a squirrel scurry by and immediately chased after it. "Oh boy! A squirrel! I'm starving!" he exclaimed excitedly, taking off after it. When he managed to finally catch it he immediately bit into it. Mr. and Mrs. Keaner just stood their with mouths opened wide and eyes bulging in shock, which then changed to ones of disgust. After Rory was done with his squirrelly meal he turned and smiled at them sheepishly with his fangs out.

"Holy crap! Vampires are real!" shouted Stella, shocked and amazed at the same time.

"That explains why you've been out so late at night!"stated his father. "Yep! I would of probably told you sooner mom and dad, but I was afraid you would like totally ground me for it."replied Rory a bit ashamed.

"You darn right we would!"exclaimed Mr. Keaner not to happy, but then Mrs. Keaner nudged him in the side and then smiled kindly at her son. "Don't listen to your father, Rory. Of course we wouldn't of been angry at you. Maybe a little freaked out at first, but not mad. You're our son and we love you no matter what. Vampire or not. Plus, it seems like becoming a vampire has helped get rid of your asthma and you needing glasses."said Mrs. Keaner sweetly to Rory.

Rory couldn't help, but give a big smile and then hug the both of them gratefully and happily. Then the hug was broken by the sound of someone clearing their throat. Rory looked at the person who made the noise, baffled.

"Shouldn't we be going now, to meet up with those friends of yours that you mentioned earlier?"suggest Stella in a sarcastic tone.

Then a look of remembrance hit Rory. "Oh yeah!" he rolled out in realization. His parents behind him just shook their heads, while Stella faced palmed herself.

"Let's go Einstein!"she said to him with a mocking sarcasm in her voice, pushing him lightly with a hand on his shoulder and a smile on her face.

* * *

Since Ethan and Benny lived on the same block, they walked to their houses together. Benny had a worried expression on his face. Ethan noticed this and probably knew why. "Do you think Grandma managed to come out of her trance like state in time to make it to safety?"asked Benny quietly, looking down for a second before looking at Ethan. Ethan didn't know how to really respond to his question, but he answered it the best he could.

"I don't know, but she's a tough old lady. I'm sure she would've snapped out of it in time and got herself to safety during the explosion. She wouldn't let some thing like that be the one thing that would do her in after all these years. Especially, if she knows how much you still need her."answered Ethan honestly and reassuringly. Benny smiled at his answer, feeling a little bit better.

"Yeah! You're probably right, E!"

As they reached the Morgan household, they saw that the house was completely collapsed in on itself. Ethan stood there in shock and could feel a strong sense of panic start to set in. He quickly ran over to the ruined house and was grabbing and throwing debris out of the way, all while calling out to his parents and Jane to answer, but there wasn't any. Tears were now falling from his eyes. Benny came up to him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, signaling that it's no use and that they must of not of survived the blast. Ethan shook his head repeatedly, refusing to except it and then fell to his knees with his face in his hands. Benny just stood there looking at his best friend remorsefully, he didn't know what to do.

Just then they heard a voice. "Ethan? Ethan, is that you?"

Ethan knew that voice and quickly stood up and both boys turned around to see Mr. and Mrs. Morgan, Jane, and Mrs. Weir approaching them. Both boys ran to them, glad to see that they had survived. Benny ran into his grandmother's arms and Ethan ran into his mother's, hugging them with tears streaming down their cheeks.

"I thought that you guys didn't make it when I saw the destroyed house!" sniffled Ethan.

"We wouldn't of made it, if it weren't for Evelyn. She just appeared out of nowhere and then told us to gather together and then she started speaking in some foreign language and then the next thing we knew we were somewhere different and safe."explained Mrs. Morgan to her son.

"So, you guys know already? About the supernatural?"asked Ethan curiously. Mrs. Morgan nodded. "She explained everything to us. About you, Benny, herself, Sarah, Erica, and Rory. Everything."she told him.

"But what I didn't tell them is what exactly happened just minutes ago at the Vampire Council building with Stern? What happened?"added Evelyn with a questioning look. "We weren't able to stop Stern. He absorbed the Lucifractor and then raised these hideous and powerful looking monsters. He then declared declared war on us and on those who appose him."explained Benny sullenly. "Well, at least you kids tried and are ok. That's all we could ask for. Speaking of which, where is everybody?"asked Mrs. Weir.

"We split up to go check on our families and then get somewhere safe and sound from Stern and his monsters."replied Ethan. Benny nodded in agreement. "Yeah! And we already got a place all lined up for a shelter. Apparently, Erica had this paranoid great grandfather who built a hidden bunker somewhere in the woods."added Benny. "We're suppose to all meet up back at your house, Mrs. Weir."said Ethan.

She nodded her head that she understood. "Well, then we better get there before they do."

* * *

While waiting near the Weir household, Ethan's parents had wanted to talk to their son. "So, you've and everyone else have been doing this for about a year now?"asked Mr. Morgan. Ethan nodded. "And you're what they call a...seer?"added his mother. Ethan just nodded again. "Is that why you asked if I have ever saw strange things like visions that one time?"she asked Ethan. "Yep."he answered quietly. "You guys aren't mad me or see me as a freak, do you?"asked Ethan meekly.

"Of course not sweetie. In fact were proud of you. Our little boy fighting bad guys and helping people. We couldn't ask for you to do anything more."Mrs. Morgan said to him, smiling sweetly at him. Ethan returned the smile. "Of course being your mother, that doesn't still mean that I won't worry about you!"she added with a mix of seriousness and jokingly, and giving him a hug and a kiss on his forehead.

Ethan blushed with embarrassment. "Mom!"he whined. She just giggled at him as his father chuckled too, ruffling his hair.

Ethan then looked over and saw Mrs. Weir and Benny rummaging through the remains of their house. "What are you guys doing?"he asked curiously approaching them.

"Grandma thinks it's best that we bring along any of her books or potions that might of survived the blast just in case. She says that once we get to the bunker, she'll immediately begin to start placing protection and concealing spells on it to hide our location from Stern and his monster minions."answered Benny holding a small stack of spell books and other books about the supernatural in his arms. Ethan nodded and decided to help.

* * *

Later, they had stacks of books and potions sitting on the ground. They were now waiting for the others. Eventually, Erica and her parents arrived. "I've got the key and the map!"exclaimed Erica, holding it up. "Excellent! Now, we just need Rory, Sarah, and their parents to arrive!"replied Benny happily. "Good job, Erica!"he praised her, putting an arm around her shoulders. Erica snapped her head in his direction and gave him a glare that said 'if you like that arm to still remain attached to the rest of you then I suggest removing it, now!' Benny got the message and quickly removed his arm and walked off.

Soon enough Rory appeared with his parents and some girl with red hair. "Hey guys!"greeted Rory all perky like.

"Who's the girl?"asked Benny giving him a questioning look. "Oh! That's Stella! She's not like us! She's just your average human! I rescued her from under some debris and I guess she just decided to stick around!"he answered with a big grin. Rory then leaned forward a little. "Isn't she's super hot?!"he whispered to Ethan and Benny. Just then Rory was hit in the arm by Stella, who was standing right behind him when he said that. "Ow!"cried Rory in pain, rubbing his arm. "What's with you and hitting me?"he asked timidly. Stella just shrugged.

"One. Because you deserved it. And two. Because it's fun!"she replied a peppy tone, with a smile. Ethan and Benny stood there trying not to laugh at Rory's predicament with the red head.

"Anyways!"announced Stella, turning to face the other three teenagers. "I'm Stella, as Rory mentioned earlier. Stella Burner."she greeted with a smile.

"I'm Benny! And that's Ethan and Erica."replied Benny, pointing to Ethan and Erica as he introduced them. Ethan gave a slight wave, while Erica just scoffed at her. Stella's kind smile then turned to an angry frown and a glare at Erica.

Ethan saw this and quickly interjected. "Don't worry! She's like that with almost everybody." He said, giving an awkward laugh at the end.

Stella just gave a slow nod, but was still giving Erica the evil eye. She then quickly turned to Rory confusedly. "I thought you said that there was another girl? You know the one that had light brown skin and dark colored hair and is way more nicer than the blonde," She began glaring at Erica about the blonde part which earned a hissed from Erica, but Stella could care less about her threat,."And I think you mentioned that Ethan had a major crush on her?"she finished.

Ethan looked away shyly, trying to hide the fact that he was majorly blushing at that very moment. He couldn't believe that Rory told her that. "Oh yeah! You mean Sarah!"replied Rory in realization. Then his face scrunched up into one of confusion and thought. "Good question?" He pondered, then looked towards Ethan for an answer.

Ethan didn't know either and just shrugged, supplying a possible answer. "I don't know. Maybe she got held up or something? I just hope that whatever it is, she's okay. Especially, since I think Jesse had went with her." Benny and Erica nodded in agreement, hoping the same thing.

* * *

**A/N: And that's my first chapter to this story! Please review and let us know what you think!**

**So, with that I now turn over chapter 3 to my Fanfic Buddy! Tag! Your it, TiredOfBeingNice! Lol!**

**MBAV fan66 ;)**


	3. Finding The Bunker

**A/N- Wassup? It be TOBN here ready to spin a new chapter for Dark Days: A World In Ruins!**

**MBAV fan66 did a great job with Chapter 2, am I right? Anyway, I am gonna start Chapter 3. It will pick up from where Chapter 2 ended. I have a sorta clear view to where I am gonna take Chapter 3, so let's hope this goes out right. Well, it actually should go alright. Or else we would have a problem, right?  
**

**But first, some people me and MBAV fan66 wanna thank!**

**123456789vampire- Aw! Thank you! I am sure MBAV fan66 can think the same thing when I say thank you for all the support. This is gonna be a great journey that we are gonna take, so it is quite exciting! And Stella is awesome, right? My fanfic Glad you are enjoying the story!**

**GEM1588- I know right? Season 3, where are you?! But we are here to deliver a Part III! And I hope it is to your liking as well! As for Anastasia, you are right. You'll just have to wait and see :) Thanks for the review!**

**Theoriginalcouples14- I can't wait to write the rest! And I know; a lot of people were liking the small humor with Rory and Benny. Least they could say when their whole town is under apocalypse. Jokes! Thanks for the review!**

**MBAV fan66- Why I am giving a shoutout to you since you are writing the story? I dunno. I guess I can ;) I am excited to take this journey with you fanfic buddy! This is gonna be SO AWESOME!**

**funkybananas47- Thank you! I am glad you think this story is pretty awesome. I hope you are ready for some fun! Well, tragic fun I guess since we are in the apocalypse...you know what I mean. Thanks for the review!**

**And to all who followed or favorited this story? Thank you. Because we appreciate it. **

**Anyway, let us do this! Are you ready? I AM!**

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: MBAV fan66 and TiredOfBeingNice (That is me alright!)

Chapter 3: Finding The Bunker

* * *

Sarah and Jesse walked through the ruined streets of Whitechapel, weary of the monsters around them. Sarah prayed that no monsters would come near them while they are trying to find Sarah's parents. In any case, she was not in the mood to do some butt kicking. Not now at least.

Sarah and Jesse walked in silence as they turned a familiar street corner. Jesse cleared his throat.

"So...heard you got the hots for Ethan Morgan." He said, brewing up a conversation. Sarah gave him a death glare as her fangs sharpened. "Be quiet Jesse." She said, not noticing how she blushed a bit. Unfortunately for her, Jesse saw. He grinned.

"So you do!" He exclaimed. Sarah sighed. "N-No." She stammered, meekly lowering her eyes to the ground in embarrassment. Jesse sighed.

"What does that guy have that I don't have?" He protested. Sarah looked at him as he continued. "I have fangs, I am a vampire, I am awesome?" He said, pointing to all the "awesome" things about him. Sarah sighed as they walked down her street, that was ruined from all the catastrophic chaos that had destroyed the town.

"That is exactly why I like Ethan." She said. Jesse gave her a confusing look as Sarah continued. "He is mortal. And even if he is, he would rather be immortal because he actually loves me back." She admitted. Jesse's eyes lowered. "Oh. Sorry if I never loved you like he did." He said sadly. Sarah nodded. "It's okay." She said finally.

Suddenly, a roar came out. Jesse and Sarah's eyes widened as their backs faced danger. Jesse closed his eyes, groaning.

"There is something behind us, isn't there." He said. Sarah nodded as they slowly turned around. They gasped.

A huge, purple eyes monster flew above them. It was sorta like a pterodactyl, but not really. It had a huge head, and it was roaring in fury. It was obvious it was under Stern's control, Sarah just didn't know how. Jesse gulped as he looked up at the scary monster in small fear.

"This is not good. We don't have any weapons, let alone know how to face a monster in the air." He informed. Sarah looked at him in disbelief. "Thanks for the up side Captain Obvious!" She yelled under the noise as the monster roared once more. Sarah groaned.

"What are we gonna do?" Jesse sighed. "Pray our death will be as quick as us." He said in response. Sarah shot daggers at Jesse. "Really?" She asked.

All of the sudden, the monster drilled in between the two vampires, splitting them up. Jesse and Sarah yelped as they were knocked to their feet. The pterodactyl-like monster swooped back up into the air, getting ready to dive right back down. Sarah bounced to her feet.

"I got an idea! Pass me something sharp!" She yelled over the wind the monster made. Jesse shrugged as he threw her a sharp piece of glass from a broken house. Sarah yelped as she quickly caught it.

"You could have killed me!" Jesse shrugged. "You can't die!" He yelled back. She rolled her eyes as she rolled to the middle of the lane. Jesse's eyes widened.

"What the hell are you doing?" He yelled. Sarah shrugged innocently. "I actually have no idea!" She yelled. The monster in the air saw her as it dove straight for her. Sarah backed up and ran super fast, catching air and speed as she jumped onto the monster's back. And with the monster, Sarah stood on its back shakily. Jesse stood to his feet as he watched in terror, Sarah riding on the monster.

"Get down from there! That is extremely dangerous!" He yelled. Sarah didn't hear him though as she slowly balanced herself, hoping the monster did not notice her. Unfortunate for her, it did.

It roared, and Sarah felt as if she were on a bull. She struggled to keep balance as she tried to stab the monster in the back. She managed to cut one clean slice, her hands sticky with blood. But that didn't stop it as it made the monster even madder.

"Jesse!" Sarah shrieked. Jesse tried to hit the monster down with rocks, but his aim sucked and he kept missing. Sarah's eyes widened as Jesse accidentally hit her with a rock, making her almost fall over. She growled at Jesse.

"Shoot better!" She yelled. Jesse threw his hands in the air in frustration. "I'm trying!" He yelled.

Suddenly, a bang was heard from behind the monster. Jesse's eyes boggled as he saw the monster roar in pain. Then the monster just flew out of the sky and collapsed on the ground with a thud. Sarah rolled off the dragon-like monster, unconscious. Jesse's eyes looked up to see who had shot the monster. He gasped.

It was a couple. They both had tan skin and dark hair, likewise to Sarah's. The husband held a gun in his hand and the wife stood by him. They both had serious looks on their faces as they ran to Sarah.

"M-Mr. and Mrs. Fox?" He said in shock. The parents nodded as the wife checked Sarah's condition. She looked up at the two boys.

"Okay, she has minor injuries with just a small blow to the head. She will be fine. How is she even alive? This would have been more serious-" Mr. Fox cut his wife off.

"If she were human." Jesse and Mrs. Fox looked at Mr. Fox in shock. Jesse stood forward as Mr. Fox continued.

"These creatures are not normal by far. They are supernatural. And the only way that Sarah would have got onto that and survived..." He trailed off as Sarah started to stir. Sarah's parents and Jesse knelt beside her as she groaned, blinking widely. She saw her parents and gasped.

"M-Mom? D-Dad?" She murmured. Mrs. Fox blinked back tears as she nodded, hugging her daughter. Mr. Fox did as well, and Jesse shrugged and joined in. Sarah pulled back when Jesse hugged her, everyone looking at the centuries old vampire. He shrugged as Sarah started to explain how she survived and all the supernatural stuff. When she told the part about Jesse, Mr. Fox growled as he pointed the gun at him. Jesse rose his hands in defeat as Sarah pulled her dad back.

"Dad! Dad stop. He is on our side." She said quickly. Mr. Fox doubtfully lowered the gun as he wrapped his arms around his daughter.

"I am just glad you are safe honey." He said. Jesse nodded.

"Me too. Now come on guys. We need to get to Benny's house before we meet another monster." Before Jesse left, he turned to face Sarah's dad.

"How do you have a gun by the way?" He asked. Mr. Fox smiled as Sarah answered for them.

"The reason I hardly see my parents is because they are in the army. My mom is a pilot and my dad is a general of the navy." She said proudly. Jesse nodded. "Touche. I am glad they weren't around when we were dating...whoops." He trailed off as Mr. Fox's eyes widened.

"You...you were my daughter's BOYFRIEND?!" Jesse gulped. "Yeah, I really hope I can outrun you." Mr. Fox rose his gun and started to chase Jesse. Jesse really was too weak since the Lucifractor affected him a lot [From when it zapped him and Sarah], so he was running at human speed. Mrs. Fox and Sarah laughed.

"Men." They said in unison as they walked to the Weir household.

* * *

At the Weir household, everyone was stocking up on some supplies and making some plans. It turns out that Rory's parents were really familiar with Whitechapel since they are neighborhood watchers, so they would be in charge of navigating everyone. Erica's parents knew where the bunker was, so they would help with that. And Ethan's parents were finding out that Jane was a spellmaster as well, so they helped her with potions. They all used the remains of the house Benny called home to see if they could try and find anything useful.

Suddenly, four people emerged from the smoke. Evelyn rushed to the front as she smiled.

"Sarah." She breathed out. She ran to hug the brunette as Jesse rolled his eyes. "Uh, hello? I survived too, y'know." Sarah's dad, still infuriated with the vampire, rose the gun he had to Jesse's head. Jesse gulped as he meekly looked at the ground. Ethan was the first to break through the crowds as he grinned.

"Sarah. You are alright!" He exclaimed, running into her arms. Sarah blushed as she hugged back. "Still here.." Jesse muttered so lowly no one heard him. Sarah's dad narrowed his eyes at Ethan as he cleared his throat. The two broke apart as Sarah looked at her father and gulped.

"Um, Ethan, these are my parents. My mom, who is a pilot, and my dad, who is a general." She said, really stretching out the word 'general'. Ethan seemed to have got the message as he saluted to the two.

"Hi Mr. and Mrs. Fox. I'm Ethan Morgan. Seer. Uh...thanks for serving our country." He said quickly, extending his hand to shake the parents. Sarah's mom shook his hand kindly, and Sarah's dad...not so much. He snorted.

"What relationship do you have with my daughter?" He asked gruffly. Ethan gulped as he felt eyes on him. "Really good friend sir. And...uh...she's my little sister's babysitter." He added.

"Sarah is Ethan's babysitter too!" Rory piped up from behind. Ethan rolled his eyes. "Shut up Rory." He hissed quietly, gritting words between his teeth as he tried to remain cool. "Not in front of the parents." He added. Sarah's dad, for the first time since Sarah saw him, laughed as he shook Ethan's hand very firmly. Ethan winced, but stayed strong as Sarah's father smiled.

"He's good Sarah. Better than snot rag Dracula." He said, shooting daggers at Jesse. He groaned.

"I'm right here!" He said in protest. Evelyn sighed.

"I am glad you guys are all here. So, what is the plan now?" Stella suddenly piped up.

"I was looking outside, and I saw a bunch of monsters by the buildings. There are people in danger as we speak. Someone needs to try and save them." She informed. Erica sighed, clearly wanting to be the first to oppose to the redhead's statement.

"But we don't have weapons. We need to have something to fight back the monsters to save people, Stella." She growled, spitting out her name. Stella rose to her feet, Rory stepping in to defend for Stella.

"But she is right Erica. How about the people of Whitechapel?" He said in protest. Erica fired her fangs, Rory doing the same.

"But we also need to be alive." She protested. Stella's eyes widened. "So we are gonna risk the lives of others, just so we could live?" Benny suddenly jumped into this too.

"Erica has a point though. We need to be able to fight back." Benny said in response, immediately taking Erica's side. Rory growled.

"So you are just gonna take your girlfriend's side?" Rory shot at Benny.

"How about you?" Benny shot back.

"Stay out of this Benny!" Stella yelled.

"Don't you talk to him like that Stella!" Erica screamed back.

"GUYS!" Mrs. Keaner yelled, splitting the four apart. They quieted down as the shamefully lowered their eyes to the ground.

"Sorry mom." Rory said meekly. Mr. Keaner nodded, standing beside his wife. "You should be young man. The last thing we want is to let our anger and stress kill us. We need to get weapons at the bunker and then we can plan there." Sarah sighed as she heard a shriek from the outside.

"Fine. But we need to move fast. Jesse and I encountered a monster already, and the forest is miles away from here. There are only three vampires and we cannot speed you all towards the forest. I don't even know what's in the forest." Sarah said. Her father agreed.

"She's right. Plus, I am starting to run out of bullets. I only packed one extra pack of 'em." Jesse scoffed. "You wouldn't be out if you weren't trying to shoot me." He mumbled. Mr. Fox's eyes darted towards the vampire, who coughed awkwardly. "I said nothing." Jesse said quickly. Evelyn nodded.

"Then I guess we all have to go. C'mon."

And with that, Evelyn led everyone out the door and into the supernatural chaos

* * *

Rory's parents led the way to where they finally reached the edge of the forest. Sarah's dad suddenly stood on this rock and began to bark out orders.

"Okay, listen up." He yelled. Everyone snapped to attention as Sarah's dad continued. Sarah silently moaned in embarrassment.

"We need to keep an eye out for any monsters. If they come at us, be prepared for a fight." He said. Benny's eyes widened.

"Um, Mr. Fox?" He asked, not being able to tear his eyes from what was behind Mr. Fox. He glared at Benny. "No interrupting until I'm done! That's an order!" He barked. Stella's eyes widened as well.

"Mr. Fox, you might wanna look behind you." She said urgently. Mr. Fox groaned. "Can you just let me focus?" He growled. Stella was trying not to get mad as Jesse rolled his eyes.

"Goddammit there is a freakin' monster behind you!" He yelled. This caught Mr. Fox's attention as he slowly turned around to be face to face with a monster. His eyes widened as the creature roared, its breath so strong it knocked Mr. Fox off his feet. Mrs. Morgan shrieked in fear.

"RUN!" She yelled.

That is when the chaos started.

Mr. Keaner and Mrs. Keaner were desperately trying to keep Rory safe by hiding in bushes. Mr. and Mrs. Morgan took shelter behind a rock with Jane and Ethan. Evelyn and Benny took cover behind the tree trunk of large tree as Sarah's parents, Erica, Sarah and Stella climbed up another tree. Mr. Fox lined up his first shot, but he ended up missing the monster by an inch. The monster roared as Sarah's dad swore. Sarah's mom skillfully jumped from one tree to another, trying to distract the monster. Erica's parents signaled for Erica and Benny as they pointed their hands to the deeper part of the forest. Erica and Benny got the idea as Erica sneakily jumped out of the tree. Benny followed her as the two followed Erica's parents in hope to find the bunker.

Meanwhile, the monster VS everyone else battle continued. Sarah hissed as she super sped to the ground, tackling the monster as she climbed onto the monster. She was posed to bite it when Evelyn screamed at her to stop. Sarah stopped in confusion, and the monster took the time to knock her out. Sarah landed beside Evelyn, and Evelyn dragged Sarah to safety.

"What?" Sarah said in slight annoyance. Evelyn sighed. "If you bite that monster, its poison will leak through you, and you could die from this monster's poison. You cannot get scratched by this, nor drink the blood from these monsters. It is okay if their blood gets on your hands, but you cannot let it go to your bloodstream." Sarah nodded as she went back to battle.

Jane and Evelyn fired small spells that temporarily distracted the monster as Jesse, Rory and Sarah tried to fight the monster back. Sarah's dad yelled to clear the area. They did as they were told and Sarah's dad started to fire his gun at the monster. The monster shrieked as small holes caused poisonous blood to pool. Sarah's dad frowned.

"This one is more stronger than the other one!" He yelled. He tried to fire more shots when he realized he ran out of bullets, even the extra pack.

"Shit." He mumbled under his breath as the monster tried to heal itself. But it was no use. This made the monster even madder as it began throw around the vampires off its leg. Rory yelped.

"You suck!" He yelled, kicking it.

Everyone went silent as Stella face palmed. The monster looked at Rory in the eye as Rory gulped. "Bad choice..." He said worryingly as the monster roared. Stella started to steam in fury.

"YOU STAY THE HELL OFF RORY!" She yelled as she grabbed a pocket knife from her jacket as she ran to the monster and before it could even lay a finger on Rory, she threw it accurately at the heart.

Even if the pocket knife was small, the force was so powerful it killed the monster. It bled to death as Jane fired a spell that made the cut grow. The monster shrieked as it landed on the ground, its own heart plopping out of its chest, lifeless in a second. Stella looked at it and gagged.

"Disgusting. There goes my pocket knife." She groaned. Rory on the other hand hugged Stella tightly.

"Thank you. Thank you so so so so so so so much." He said gratefully. Stella nodded, strangely hugging back. "It is all okay. It will be fine." Ethan walked out of safety as with Rory's parents, Ethan's parents, Jane and Evelyn. Sarah's parents jumped down from the trees safely as they walked towards their daughter. Sarah and Jesse stood up slowly from their place on the ground as they gathered around the bloody monster.

"Where is Erica and Benny?" Jane asked. Evelyn wearily looked at her and sighed.

"Erica's parents were able to sneak away from the monster to find the bunker with Erica and Benny. I told Benny to give us a signal where it is."

As if on cue, a bright beam of light was shown in the heart of the forest. Stella breathed in and out.

"That is Benny I guess." She said. Rory nodded in agreement. "I guess we should get going then."

Everyone walked through the forest. Now that Sarah's dad's gun was useless, they were basically defenseless. Mr. Fox did keep the gun in case their were bullets in the bunker. So everyone followed the beam of light as they tried to keep an eye out for monsters.

They safely got to the bunker, where Erica's parents, Benny and Erica stood, hiding behind some bushes. Sarah called out for them, and Benny's head popped out and he smiled.

"You guys. You're okay." He breathed out. Erica smiled as her parents came out of the bushes. Jesse sighed, swiping dirt off his jacket.

"No time for reuniting. Sorry guys, but there are clearly monsters roaming this forest as well, and people will start dying if we don't do anything about it." He said gruffly. Sarah's dad groaned.

"I hate to admit it, but Drac is right. We need to hurry along up." A roar came from within the trees as Erica's dad pulled out a key.

"Okay. So we have the key. Let's get in as soon as possible." He said as he pointed to a metal shack. Jesse frowned.

"That is our safe house?" He asked. "How is this gonna happen?" Stella nudged Jesse. "It's underground, genius. That is how you get in." She sneered. Jesse nodded in approval as everyone went inside and climbed down the stairs. Erica's mom locked the door as they reached the bunker underground.

The bunker was filled with many guns and a computer system. Ethan's eyes widened.

"This is awesome." He said in awe. Benny nodded. "Nerd paradise. This is coming straight from Walk Of The Living Dead, Season 4" He added. Rory smiled. "The scene where Clayton finds the bunker and then they have the huge bomb thing in the bunker, and they use it to defeat-" Stella's eyes widened.

"No spoilers!" She exclaimed. Everyone looked at her as she meekly lowered her eyes to the ground. "I am only on Season 2." She added in embarrassment.

Suddenly, the computer fizzled a bit and a face showed on the monitor. Erica's eyes widened.

"Stern has control over the computer system. It shouldn't affect us a lot, but we are getting a video feed he is exposing to all the ad monitors in Whitechapel." She said nervously. Stern's face appeared as he grinned.

"The time has come." He said. "You are all going to die." He paused to cackle as everyone exchanged looks nervously.

"Where are your heroes now?"

The computer shut down and Ethan groaned.

"The computer system is temporarily out. I can hook back the wires for it to power back up, but it might take a while. In the meanwhile, we should make a plan." Rory gulped.

"We are those heroes, aren't we?" He asked. Stella sighed.

"And you just realized that?"

* * *

**A/N- There ya go! They encountered two deadly monsters and found the bunker. Some tension is rising, they need a plan, and now what?! Find out next chapter!**

**So I hand it over to you, my fanfic buddy! Write away! You will be awesome, and I know it :)**

**Anyway, drop a review [We would love that] and thanks for reading!**

**TOBN is done! PEACE OUT MY PEOPLE! Lol!  
**

**In Fangs, We Trust**


	4. Getting Organized

**A/N: So, I guess it's my turn again? Huh? Well, don't worry! MBAV fan66 is on it! Lol!**

**Thanks to TOBN, we learned why Sarah hardly ever sees her parents. And that it's clear that her father doesn't really care too much about Jesse. Lol! Jesse better be glad that he dodged a bullet there! Literally! Lol!**

**So, in this chapter the gang will be busy organizing and preparing the bunker for war. Plus, expect a little...well I don't want to say or else I might ruin it! So, you'll just have to read to the end of chapter to find out! Sorry!...Or am I? Lol! Naw! I'm totally sorry! But am I really? Lol! Let's just get on with it, shall we? Let's! Lol!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: TiredOfBeingNice and Me! MBAV fan66!

Chapter 4: Getting Organized

* * *

After Stern's ominous message, the group had began to make plans as to what their next move is first. And of course, with Mr. Fox's general type personality, took charge once again. Sarah just stood there and rolled her eyes, embarrassed by her father, yet again.

"Ok! First things first! We need to get communications back up and running again!" announced Mr. Fox to the group. "You!" he said pointing to Ethan. "You said that you can probably get the system back up and running again?"he asked him with a serious look. Ethan nodded nervously, obvious a bit intimidated by the general.

"Y-Yes sir!" he replied meekly.

"Excellent! Then you get on that, then! The faster we are able to tell what's happening out there, the better!" praised Mr. Fox, nodding his head.

"And I better get started on warding this place and placing protection spells around the area. Benny. I'm gonna need your help with that." added Evelyn. Benny nodded in agreement to her. Just then Benny's stomach, grumbled.

"I guess all that 'running for your life' business must of worked up an appetite." blushed Benny in embarrassment. "Well, I was a chef at the restaurant Mon Amour. You know. Before it was probably blown to bits like the rest of town. Maybe, I can go check out the kitchen and see what's in there and try to prepare something to eat for everybody. You kids must be hungry after the day that you've had." suggested Mr. Keaner.

Sarah and Erica gave each other a look, before looking back at him. "Actually, Mr. Keaner. Me, Erica, and Rory don't eat regular food anymore." replied Sarah. Then she heard Jesse make a clearing his throat sound. "Uh...hello? Forgetting someone?" spoke Jesse in a suggestive tone. Sarah rolled her eyes. "Oh, yeah. And him too." she added flatly, as if she didn't really care. Which she didn't.

"Oh, yeah! I forgot. I'm still getting used to the idea of vampires being real." said Mr. Keaner, scratching the back of his head with a small blush on his face. "It's ok, Dad! I still love to eat human food anyways! Especially, yours! Oh! And Mom's baking too!" exclaimed Rory with a big smile on his face. Then it looked like he might of been drooling a bit at the thought of his parents cooking.

"Well, alright then! Honey? You mind helping me in the kitchen?" asked Mr. Keaner to his wife. She gave him a nod. "OOO! OOO! Can I help?! Can I help?!" exclaimed Rory, jumping up and down in excitement with his hand in the air. His parents laughed at his enthusiasm and nodded, saying it was ok with them. Rory squealed in excitement in response.

"Well that's great and all, but what are the vampires suppose to do about food? We can't just start feeding off our families." said Erica in a smart alack way and emphases on the word vampire.

"Here!" said Evelyn as she pulled out a bottle with red liquid in it. "Luckily a few bottles of the blood substitute managed to survive, but I'm afraid I only have enough for each of you take just one. I'll have make some more later."

Erica gave a disgusted look at the liquid, remembering what Sarah had told her how it tasted when she used to drink it when she was still a fledgling. "Eew! Yuck! Are you serious?"

Sarah walked over and took a bottle. "Come on, Erica! It's either this or like you said before, we could just drink the blood from our parents." she replied, holding a second bottle out for her to take. "Can't we just go out and just hunt something to eat?" suggested Erica, still in disgust at the substitute. Sarah shook her head no.

"She's right, Erica! We can't go out there to hunt for food. Not with those monsters out there. Plus, it'll be slim pickings since probably any survivors are probably in hiding like us." said Jesse agreeing with Sarah. Erica stared at him for minute and let his words sink in, before finally grabbing the bottle from Sarah. "Fine!" she huffed and took the cap off and drank the fake blood with a not too satisfying look on her face. Sarah smiled at her and then drink from her's. Rory and Jesse took one as well and proceeded to drink theirs.

"Yuck! That tasted like crap!" stated Erica in distaste. "Yeah, Sarah! How did you ever manage to drink this god awful stuff?" wondered Jesse, agreeing with Erica about the drink.

Sarah just shrugged. "I guess you just get used to it after a while. Plus, I was still a fledgling back then so I hadn't really gotten to experience the wonderful taste of blood yet." she replied nonchalantly, taking another sip of her's. Erica and Jesse gave each other strange looks and then they both mockingly gagged at the sight. Rory on the other was actually enjoying his.

"I think it taste rather good!" he cheered.

Erica and Jesse gave him a weird look at first, but then shook their heads at the blonde. _Of course he would like it. He's Rory_. They both thought.

"Now with that out of the way. We can finally get back to business. I'll whip up a lot more of the substitute later. Right now, me and my grandson have some protection spells to get started on. The sooner the better." said Mrs. Weir, leaving with Benny in tow.

"And we better get started on those snacks for everyone." added Mr. Keaner, which earned a slight nod of agreement from his wife. "Oh, goodie! Goodie! Goodie! I love helping Mom and Dad in the kitchen!" cheered Rory in excitement like a little kid. Stella giggled fondly at Rory's child like demeanor. Then the Keaner family then left to find the kitchen and explore it's contents.

"And I'll get started on those computers. But I might need a little help with some stuff." said Ethan.

"I'll help you, dear!" replied Mrs. Jones. "I used to major in computers and electronics back in college, before deciding to finally just become an attorney."

"Really?" he asked in disbelief. Mrs. Jones just nodded. "I guess that explains where Erica got her ner...I mean, smarts from." he said, correcting himself after getting a death glare from Erica. Jesse stood there with a smirk and a small chuckle at Ethan getting glared at by Erica. Sarah saw this and nudged him in his side. Hard. And then gave him a death glare in turn, saying 'keep laughing and see what happens.'

* * *

As Ethan and Mrs. Jones were busy fixing the computer system, everybody else explored the rest of the bunker. They had found that the place was a lot bigger than they had thought. There was at least twenty bedrooms in the place, each with there own bathrooms. They also found a room that looked like an infirmary.

It turns out that Erica's dad is actually a doctor and he had agreed to be the bunker's doctor and provide any medical treatment to any who might need medical help. Mrs. Morgan offered to help him by being his nurse, which he accepted. It also turns out that she used to be a nurse before she got pregnant and decided to become a stay at home mom to raise her son.

Once all of the exploring was done and bedrooms were picked, everyone that was human, was hungry. Luckily, the Keaners had just finished preparing beverages and snacks for everybody. When everyone got to the dinning hall part of the bunker, they were a little disappointed at what they saw.

There wasn't much there and it didn't look to appetizing either. It wasn't Mr. Keaner's fault though, it was just that that was all he had to work with since everything was old food preserves.

"Sorry everybody. That's the best that I can do. I'm afraid that even for a professional chef like myself, there's not much you can do with just jarred and canned preserves and bottles of water." apologized Mr. Keaner with a frown. For a chef of his caliber, he wasn't too pleased with his creations on the table.

"Alright! Where's that food! I'm starving! Those protection spells were NOT easy to do, I might add!" erupted Benny's voice, coming in the room. He wiped some sweat off his forehead as he approached the table with a smile on his face, glade that he can now finally get his grub on. But when he to got the table, he saw how horrible looking and small the portions were. This was not what he was expecting, and he then frowned at the sight.

"This is it? What the heck is this stuff?!" exclaimed Benny in disappointment. "Ow!" he then shouted out, rubbing the back of his head after his grandma had just smacked him. He then turned to look at her in question.

"Don't be rude, Benjamin! They clearly worked very hard on this! It was probably very hard for them to turn a bunch of preserves into something decent to eat. You can only do so much with preserves. So, be nice and apologize! Or else I'll spank you with lightening! And don't think that just because we're now at war that I won't do it, either! Because I will!" scolded the old lady.

Benny gulped with a worried look and a slight bit of redness in his cheeks. "Sorry." he said, with his head held down in defeat. Mrs. Keaner told him that it was alright and that she would of probably reacted the same way too. He looked up and smiled at her and then took a seat and hesitantly took some of the food. He looked at it strangely at first, but then just gave a quick shrug and plopped it into his mouth. He was surprised that it actually tasted better than it looked, and got some more.

Everyone just stared at him in confusion. "What? It tastes better than it looks! Try some!" he offered, holding a plate out with some food on it.

Shrugging and deciding that you only live once, Stella took some and placed it in her mouth. Her eyes then lit up in delight. "He's right! It does taste delicious!" she said, stuffing some more into her mouth as well. Benny gave her a nod in agreement with his mouth crammed full. Erica giggled at the way he looked right now. He looked like a chipmunk. Benny heard her and blushed.

Soon everybody was eating and enjoying the meal. Afterwards, Evelyn said that after she gets done with brewing more fake blood and making some potions to aid them, she'll zap up some more and better ingredients to cook with. Jane had offered to help her with the brewing and potion making. Evelyn gladly accepted the help, but not before getting the ok from her parents first. She even enlisted the aid of her grandson, who wasn't too thrilled about more work to do.

"So, now that everybody's fed and happy. What's next?" asked Jesse.

"Next, we come up with a plan to send out a small reconnaissance team to look for any survivors out there." replied Mr. Fox. "I think it's best that me and my wife go. We have the combat experience, so I think that we can handle ourselves better then anyone else."

"Yeah. But two people aren't going to be much of a rescue team." snorted Jesse, who then gulped and looked nervous due to the death glare that he was getting from Sarah's father. "B-but I'm sure you two are more than capable of handling it though!"

A heavy sigh could then be heard from Sarah's father. "As much as I hate to agree with fang face over there, he's right. We still need at least a few more people to go with us." agreed Mr. Fox, still glaring at the vampire, against his better judgement.

Samantha and Ross both looked at each other, as if giving each other a silent agreement, and looked back at the general. "Me and Sam would like to volunteer to go." spoke Ross.

"Are you sure? I mean it's going to be very dangerous out there." asked Mrs. Fox, making sure.

"Yes!"

"Well if you guys are going then so am I." added Ethan with determination.

"And me too! You might need a little vampire assistance out there!" added Sarah.

"Wait? What about the computers?" asked Erica.

"Don't worry about those, honey. Me and Ethan managed to get them back up and running again. I'll stay here and man the computers while they're out there doing their thing. Oh! And here! Take these!" replied Mrs. Jones, handing out small little communication devices that fit in your ear like a Bluetooth device. Everyone took one and placed it in their ear, turning it on. "I found these in a box next to some of the servers. They were old and out dated looking and didn't work when I found them, but thanks to Jane, she did a spell on them that made them work again and look more up to date."

"Cool!" exclaimed Rory and Benny at the same time. "Now, there like some kind of special ops team or something!" said Rory. "Yeah!" agreed Benny.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Now that that's settled. Can we get going? There's people out there who still need help from those monsters." comment Sarah in announce. The two boys cut their feeling of awesomeness short and everybody got to work.

"Good luck out there. And be safe." said Evelyn in concern for the small group about to head out. "Don't worry, Evelyn. We will." replied Ross. After gearing up with guns and ammo, the small rescue team of six, set out on their search and rescue mission of finding any survivors from the blast and Stern's evil monsters and to bring them back to the bunker, where it's safer.

* * *

As they walked down the street, the adults were up front while Sarah and Ethan walked a little ways behind them. As they walked the adults had started up a conversation regarding their two teenagers.

"So, it seems that our little Sarah is quite smitten with your son." stated Mr. Fox, with his rifle gun in hand.

"The same goes for our son, too." replied Ross, with his hand gun. Then he let out a laugh. "Even though they try to hide their feelings about it, but it's much too obvious to not notice how they react around each other." The other parents joined in on his little laugh as well.

"It's true! Our Ethan couldn't be any more obvious. He always lights up and comes running down the stairs every time we let him know that Sarah's arrived for her babysitting." giggled Samantha.

"And whenever I get a chance to either video chat or call Sarah, it's seems she's always talking about him. And every word that comes out of her mouth about him is always positive." added Mrs. Fox, giggling. Mr. Fox turned to her and gave her a questioning look. "How come she never mentions him to me?" he asked, with a confused expression. His wife just laughed at him. "Because honey! She knows how over protective you get when it comes to boys. She probably thought that you would scare the poor boy away before she even got a chance to date him. I mean, just look what happened after you found out about when she used to date that Jesse guy, dear." she explained. Mr. Fox's cheeks then turned red, which rarely ever happens.

"They do seem to really care for each other a lot. I'm surprised that they haven't started dating yet?" stated Mrs. Morgan.

"I know! I think that they would make a cute couple together." agreed Mrs. Fox. with a smile.

"And even cuter grandchildren!" exclaimed Mrs. Morgan with a smile. The two wives giggled together like two little school girls.

Choking sounds could be heard coming from the husbands. "Grand-kids?!" exclaimed Mr. Fox with wide eyes. "Over my dead body!" he said harshly, after recovering. Mr. Morgan then shot him a look. "What's that suppose to mean? Is my son not good enough for your daughter, or something?" asked Ross with a bit of anger.

"Maybe, for all I know! I don't even know him that well, yet. What makes you think that I'm going to let him do THAT to my little girl, anyways?! Not without my permission, he's not! And besides! He's probably like every other boy out there! Only just wants to get in her pants and then once he get's what he wants then he's done with her! Leaving her with nothing more than a broken heart! Well not on my watch!" replied Mr. Fox angrily at Ross.

"Ethan would never do that! We raised him better than that! And that little move works both ways! What if she just wants to take our son's virginity and then after that she's done with him! Leaving him the one with the broken heart? Huh?" retaliated Mr. Morgan back. The two men where now in each others faces, snarling.

The women just laughed at their husbands protective papa bear nature towards their children. "Boys!" shouted Mrs. Morgan. "We were just kidding! They can't have children! Remember?"

"Yeah! When they explained about the difference between real vampires and the fake ones in the movies? Vampires can't have kids! We were just fantasizing about it." stated Mrs. Fox. Both men then took a step back, remembering, and blushed while scratching the back of their heads.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry." they both said, looking down in shame.

"Besides! Who are we to get in the way of young love?" quipped Mrs. Fox.

"And it's not our place to but in our kids love lives." added Mrs. Morgan, with a nod. Then she made a thinking face. "Unless it's obvious that it's a bad relationship. Then we do have the right to but in." she said with a humorous smile on her face. Then they all broke out into laughter.

"Well. If my little girl has feelings for someone, I'm glad that it's for your son. He really does seem like a very nice boy. And I'm sorry for what I said about him earlier." apologized Mr. Fox.

"Yeah! Same here! She does make him really happy when she's around." said Mr. Morgan. The two proud fathers then shook hands.

* * *

Meanwhile, hanging in the very back of the group, away from the parents. Sarah and Ethan were walking together, having their own discussion. "So, what do you think they're talking about up there?" asked Ethan.

Of course, with her vampire hearing, Sarah was able to hear the adults whole conversation. Her cheeks then turned a deep red. "I don't know." she answered, deciding not to tell him about the very embarrassing conversation that just took place up ahead of them between their parents. Ethan looked at her in question, as to why she was blushing, but decided not to ask and just gave a small shrug.

"So, what happened between you and Jesse, when you went back to your house? I know that he followed you back there." asked Ethan with a mix of curiosity and jealousy.

"Nothing much, really. We just talked." replied Sarah casually.

"About what?" he asked, looking down.

"About us."

"Us?" he repeated, looking at her in confusion.

Sarah nodded. "Me. You. And why I like you better than him." she said not really thinking, cutting herself short when she realized what she just said, with her eyes wide. She quickly looked away with a blush.

Ethan's eyes were wide too and then he too blushed. "R-r-really? You like me?" he stuttered, getting all choked up.

Sarah nodded slowly. "Uh-huh." she said quietly to him. "And if it's any consolation. I think that my father likes you much better than he does Jesse." she added bashfully.

"Really? How so?"

"Well...he didn't chase you around, shooting bullets at you, like he did to Jesse when I told him about how I used to date the jerk and what me and your relationship is to one another." she laughed. Ethan laughed at that mental image. Then it hit him. She had just said that she liked him. On the inside, Ethan was now doing cartwheels. He couldn't believe that she actually liked him back! But was it as a friend or something more? He had to know.

"Do you mean like as a friend?"

Sarah didn't say anything, she just shook her head no as her blush deepen. Ok. Now, he was freaking out on the inside. Should he tell her how he feels about her, now? Should he go for it and ask her to be his girlfriend?

After taking a deep breath, he decided to just go for it. His palms started to get all sweaty as a bead of sweat ran down his forehead. He was so nervous, he felt like he could just faint right now. He stopped in his tracks, as did Sarah looking back at him wondering why he stopped. He looked at her, in her gorgeous brown eyes. He couldn't believe that he was doing this, but here it goes.

"S-S-Sarah. I have something that I want to tell and ask you."

She looked at him with curious eyes. "Yeah, Ethan? What is it?"

He took another deep breath. "E-Ever since that day that I accidentally spilled my lunch on you at school. I couldn't stop thinking about you. It was like love at first sight. And when I found out that you were going to be Jane's babysitter...I got really ecstatic about it and couldn't believe it. The more I got to know you the more that I fell for you. Your smile. Your eyes. Your hair. Your smell. Your laugh. Everything about you just always seems so perfect to me. Even your vampirism. In my eyes, there is no flaw about you. Because of you, I got to experience a whole other world that I didn't even know actually existed in real life. And I thank you for that because now my life is always filled with adventure and mayhem. Even if it does get a little annoying at times, but as long as I get to experience those adventures with you, then I don't mind. Because...because...I love you Sarah! And...and...I was just wondering if...you would like to be my..." he said, trailing off. He then took a nervous gulp before finishing. "girlfriend?"

Sarah didn't know what to say. She was so touched by what he had just told her. He basically confessed his entire feelings to her. In a way, she kind of already knew how he felt about her, but she never knew that it went that deep. He had finally told her how he felt, although is was obvious that he was nervous about it, but that's one of the many things that she loved about him. How shy and nervous he got around her, but yet still brave and so caring whenever she needed him.

Sarah's silence was beginning to kill Ethan. He started to think that maybe telling her was stupid and that she only saw him nothing more than just a friend. Sarah smiled lovingly and sweetly at him. She was about to give an answer when she was interrupted by the sound of gun fire, coming from up ahead. They both ran to see what was happening. When they caught up to the adults, they saw that they were fighting off two monsters.

"Are you guys alright?" she asked the parents. "Yeah! We're all ok, sweetie!" replied her mom, firing her gun at one of the monsters.

"The bullets aren't affecting them! They're not even slowing them down!" shouted Mr. Fox, as he fired some more.

Then Sarah remembered what happened the last time they faced these monsters. "Their hearts! They die if their hearts are cut out!" she recalled.

Then her father stopped shooting and pulled out a huge hunter's knife from his boot, and charged at the creature, yelling. "Ahhhhh!" The monster made a move and tried to claw him, but he dodged it and then plunged the knife in the vile creature's chest, cutting it open and then gouged it's heart out. The monster let an ear splitting screech before falling to the ground, dead.

The Morgans had the other one distracted, while Mrs. Fox got into position to do the same as her husband. Once she saw her opening, she made her move, as Mr. and Mrs. Morgan stopped firing. She leaped out at the creature, pinning it to the ground. The thing tried to claw and bite her, so she punched in the face, which seemed to knock it out. Mrs. Fox always did have the strongest punch in the family, which was one of the reasons why Mr. Fox had fallen for her. She pulled out her knife and carved the things chest open and pulled out the heart, killing it.

She got up and took out a rag to wipe the blood off her hands. "And that's that!" she said satisfyingly with a smirk. As everyone was trying to regain their breaths from all the adrenaline, Sarah looked back over at Ethan and noticed that a monster was about to attack him from behind. A look of worry quickly spread across her face, as she used her vampire speed to rush over to him and tackle it to the ground. Sarah wrestled with it for a minute, before finally taking her bare hand and plunging it into the monster's chest with her vampire strength and ripping out the heart. The creature then stopped moving. Sarah stood up and tossed the monster heart to the side, panting from being out of breath.

She let out a sigh of relief that it was over. Ethan quickly ran up to her to see if she was alright. She nodded her head yes, giving him a reassuring smile, and he sighed in relief too. He then walked back over to his and Sarah's parents, while she didn't follow. When she saw that he wasn't looking, she lifted up her shirt sleeve on her left arm. There was a small scratch, but it didn't seem to be healing. She frowned at it and knew where she got the cut from. The monster. "Yeah. Just fine." she mumbled to herself, glumly.

She knew that it was only a matter of a time before the poison took it's toll on her, but she didn't want to mention it to anybody. They all had enough troubles to deal with right now. Like looking for survivors, trying to survive themselves, stopping Stern and his monsters, and then rebuilding the town.

Besides. What's a war without it's casualties? If she was to die, at least it was for a good cause, but...there's Ethan. He would probably be devastated if she were to die. But what was there to do? There is no time to stop now and try to figure out an antidote to the poison. Hopefully, he'll understand her reason for not telling anyone once she's gone.

Sarah quickly shook those thoughts out of her mind. Now was not the time for that. She has more important things to focus on right now! Taking a calming breath, she walked back over to everybody. As soon as she arrived, growling could be heard from nearby. When they looked around they noticed that they were practically being surrounded by monsters. They all backed up to each other, back to back.

"What now?" she asked.

"Now. We run!" answered her father, as he pulled out a round looking object, a flash bomb, and threw it down.

A bright flash emerged and blinded the monsters, as the small group of parents and two teenagers made their escape. Safely getting away.

* * *

**A/N: And that's chapter 4!**

**Oh no! Sarah's been poisoned! What will happen to her now? Will she make it or die from the poison's effects? I'd tell you, but then that would just ruin all the fun! Lol!**

**Did you notice how Sarah never got a chance to give Ethan her answer to his question? What do you think she'll say? Will she say yes or no? It's probably pretty obvious, but you never know with me and TiredOfBeingNice being the story's authors. Lol!**

**Don't forget to leave us a review! We love getting feed back! So, tell us what you think!**

**Until next chapter...er...I mean my next chapter, which will be number 6, I bid thee farewell! Lol! ;)**

**MBAV fan66**


	5. Tragic And Storms

**A/N- Wassup? It be TOBN here with a new chapter of Dark Days: A World In Ruins!**

**So MBAV fan66 did an AMAZING job as always with the previous chapter! And I am just here to take a small spin on everything once more with the dark and twisted apocalypse! **

**Recap: Sarah got poisoned, Ethan is waiting for an answer for a future love life, Ethan and Sarah's parents with the whole sex talk [Thanks fanfic buddy! Nailed that one ;)], and people still in the bunker! Things are about to get real...**

**Shoutouts to...**

**GEM1588- Thank you! We both are glad you are enjoying the story! And action is just how we'll play because this is gonna get action...full. Jokes! Anyway, thanks for the review and the support! **

**123456789vampire- Yeah, there is a slight pang of humor in such a dark story, and we are glad you are loving it! Poor Jesse? Not for me! But I guess if you put yourself in his shoes, you'd wanna slap yourself for being him. Lol! Thanks for the review**

**Anyway, so I will try and bring some drama to the story now! This is a warning that things might get sad and sweet, and will blow you on a huge roller coaster of emotions. I warn you to pull out tissues and get ready for some small hints of humor! So! Let us begin!**

**Make sure to drop a review [We both love them!] and oh!**

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By MBAV fan66 and TiredOfBeingNice ('Tis I! Jokes!)

Chapter 5: Tragic And Storms

* * *

Stella sat in her room of the underground bunker, yawning as she plopped on the bed. A knock came from outside and she groaned.

"Come in!" She yelled from inside. When the door creaked open, a monster popped out!

Stella yelled in fear as she pulled out a Swiss army knife. The monster laughed as it pulled of its face...er..mask. Stella sighed as she saw the familiar blue eyes and the waft of the beautiful blonde hair she grown fond of. She gave a uneasy laugh.

"R-Rory! You scared the living hell outta me." She said, brushing her fiery hair out of her eyes, the hair tickling on her cheek. Rory smiled as he sat down beside Stella on the bed, throwing the monster mask aside. He smiled.

"I kept this after my friends battled zombies. It was the best. I turned into a zombie...things were blurry...but it was all good." He explained, eyes drawing to the mask. Stella looked at him in complete awe and confusion, and Rory laughed.

"I guess that is kinda freaky." He said quietly. Stella shook her head, still in small hysterics. "Of course not! That is as badass as it gets in here!" She said happily. Rory shot her a goofy smile as she continued the conversation.

"I cannot believe there are so many rooms in such a cramped underground bunker! I always thought they would be like the movies, only a small room with monitors. Sorta like that one comedy sci-fi movie...about the apocalypse and the nerds..." Rory smiled as they both got the title in their minds.

"Nerds Against Lost Humanity!" They exclaimed at the same time, pointing at each other. They burst into giggles and laughs as Rory grinned. "I never knew you had such good taste in movies." He said, blushing softly. A small blush spread across Stella's soft, pale cheeks as she looked away from Rory.

"My mom would take me to watch it. She was a huge sci-fi fan." She said, fighting back tears as she rethought about the memories she shared with her deceased mother, and mentions that she said about her dad. Rory saw the distress in her eyes as he rubbed her back reassuringly.

"Hey...your parents would be so happy of you right now. You are such a beautiful girl...they would be so happy." He said, smiling softly. Stella looked at him through teary eyes as she hugged Rory tightly.

"Thanks Rory. That really means a lot to me." She said, sniffling as she hugged Rory, stroking her delicate hands through his soft hair.

They pulled back slightly, looking at each others' matching blue eyes as Rory smiled, leaning in closer. Stella took the message and leaned in towards the blonde goofball, a smile on her face as they leaned even closer, lips almost touching-

"Hey guys?"

Rory yelped as Stella nearly hit his head. They jumped apart, staring at the open door. It was Benny, a smirk on his face as he grinned.

"Sorry to interrupt any...personal time," He started. Rory rolled his eyes as Stella shot a glare at him. Benny gulped. "But we have a problem." He said urgently. Rory and Stella exchanged fearful looks as they followed Benny out of the room and into the main computer system room.

On the monitors, there were a bunch of blinking red dots, and a dark grey smoke creeping in, swallowing the screen's blueness and covering it with a grey. Stella saw Erica and Jesse's awe as Evelyn watched it in terror.

"What...what is that?" Erica asked. Mrs. Jones frowned.

"It is a monitor of Whitechapel as we speak. Which at the moment, the grey means only one thing, and that's a storm. I don't know much more though." She said worryingly. Evelyn seemed to have the answer as she gulped.

"There are sparks of purple in that storm. Which means..." Jane gasped. "It was magic made." Mr. Keaner's eyes widened. "If that storm is magic made, it must be that Stern guy, correct?" Benny nodded.

"Affirmative." He answered nonchalantly in a fake monotone voice- likewise to the radio people- as he flipped through his spellbook. Everyone looked at the spellmaster, who looked up and shrugged. "What? I was waiting to say that ALL DAY." He said jokingly, waiting for a laugh that ever came. His smile faltered as Stella rolled her eyes.

"How do you even know it's daytime when there is a FREAKIN' STORM IN THE MIDDLE OF THE APOCALYPSE?!" She yelled. Benny shrugged innocently as Rory calmed her down.

"It is okay Stella. Calm down. Deep breath." He reassured her. Mrs. Keaner smiled fondly at her son. "That's my boy." She cheered. "Ladies' man" Rory blushed as Stella did as well. Jesse rolled his eyes.

"Focus!" He snapped. Erica took the time to glare at the older vampire, who obviously wasn't on anyone's good side at the moment. He huffed as he silenced once more. Benny suddenly exclaimed as he pointed to the crisp pages of his spellbook.

"Eureka!" He exclaimed. Everyone's attention was brought back at him as he read from the pages of the spellbook.

"It looks like that those purple sparks only mean that the storm was made to produce electricity. It may be good for computers, but alas, we aren't all computers, so this storm..." Rory started to panic.

"That storm can very well kill anyone who is outside!" Benny whispered a spell and a small red orb, no bigger than the Lucifractor itself, appeared in his hands. Evelyn smiled proudly at her grandson.

"Good work Benny." She said. Benny blushed. "Thanks grandma." He said modestly. Mrs. Jones frowned. "What exactly is that?" Jane made her way through as she smiled.

"It's a orb that can absorb all electromagnetic waves and any form of electricity. It's pretty cool. I sorta wanted to make that for my science fair, but the school's destroyed so..yeah." She concluded. Stella ruffled her hair. "It's okay Jane. It'll be open again soon." Jane laughed. "I don't want that either." She joked. Mr. Jones smiled.

"So this can destroy the electrical storm?" He asked. Rory nodded. "I guess. It could be like that one movie, the one with Gary Larkin and Larina Soft...and the one with the electrical storm like this..." Stella smiled as it clicked in both minds.

"Electrifying Storm!" They exclaimed at the same time, dissolving into giggles. Mr and Mrs. Keaner looked fondly at their son. "You guys are perfect for each other." Mrs. Keaner gushed. Mr. Keaner nodded excitingly as the two blushed. Jesse frowned.

"But first, you all have to give the orb to someone. And you will have to fly it through the storm, will you not?" He asked. Evelyn frowned. "He's right. We need to get that orb to Ethan, Sarah, and their parents." She commanded. Benny rose his hand.

"I volunteer to go." He said. People looked at him as if he were crazy as he shrugged. "What? I am the only..erm...youthful spellmaster here." Evelyn rolled her eyes as Jane huffed. Benny frowned quickly. "No offense...grandma...and Jane. I just don't want you guys..uh.." Jane smirked. "You care about us! You care about us!" She teased. Evelyn stifled a laugh and tried to stay mature, but the way Benny crossed his arms made the act impossible.

"I...I am just doing it for the sake of the team." He said, nodding. Evelyn kissed his forehead. "Good luck Benny." She said. Benny frowned. "I ain't going alone." He quickly said, rather terrified. The room was silent until Erica sighed.

"Fine." She huffed in annoyance. "I'll go. BUT!" She paused. "Only for the sake of the team." She said. Benny smiled as Erica sided with him. Rory shrugged. "I'll come. You'll need more vamps." Jesse nodded. "Agreed." He said. "I'll tag along." Benny rolled his eyes as Stella nodded.

"Hell ya." She answered, siding with her new friends. Evelyn smiled as she looked at the assembled team .

"You guys stay safe, okay?" She said firmly. Benny saluted as everyone laughed.

"Affirmative." They all said in unison, copying Benny. Benny grinned as Mrs. Keaner smiled. "Make sure to come back for dinner!" She cheered. Benny nodded as everyone watched the teenagers climb the ladder and open the steel trap door and climbed into the apocalyptic storm.

* * *

Ethan, Sarah, and their parents, walked towards the old Whitechapel airport. Ethan saw a few survivors near the runway that was sorta close to the building, and he signaled everyone to come with him. The people were huddled in the cold as Ethan saw something behind them. He started to back up as the people screamed for their help.

"Do something!" Sarah hissed. Ethan gulped as he called out the only thing he could.

"RUN!"

Behind them was a thick cloud of grey smoke, blitzes of purple sparks spewing from them. One of the sparks landed on a man and he was electrocuted. Dead.

People started to run towards them as Sarah super sped them to safety. But they were all too slow.

Sarah was able to zoom back to safety and was about to lead them into the building for the airport, when the smoke consumed them. Sarah screamed as Ethan, who made it inside, pulled her in and slammed the door.

When the smoke cleared and past, Ethan huffed out. Sarah's eyes were pressed against the glass door, seeing black and charred bodies, lying around limply on the cold ground. Sarah had tears run down her eyes as she saw the body of a little girl as well. She sobbed into Ethan's shoulders as Mr. Fox sighed.

"It's not your fault sweetie. Every hero makes their sacrifices." He reassured. Sarah wept. "B-But we could've saved them. I could've saved them. They're gone because I couldn't do anything." She said in remorse, glancing at the bodies and crying even harder. Ethan rubbed her shoulder and ran his fingers through her hair.

"It is okay Sarah." He said softly. "You couldn't have saved them anyway." Sarah looked at Ethan, and saw the truth in what he said. Even if she did manage to pull them in, they couldn't come. Not in this condition. They would've just died. Sarah nodded as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Okay." She whimpered. Mrs. Morgan frowned. "Are you alright Sarah? Your hand...it's a bit..um..purple."

Sarah glanced at her left hand and saw a spot of dark purple. She gulped; the poison was coursing through her. She knew the only reason why she couldn't run fast enough was that she was weakening. Sarah mustered a smile.

"Just a bruise. Nothing to be worried about." She said, panting. Mrs. Fox sighed as she saw through the glass windows, the smoke heading towards the city.

"What are we gonna do about these storms?" She asked worryingly. Ethan shrugged. "I dunno, but that storm is gonna wipe us out if we don't do something." He said. Mr. Morgan nodded.

"He's right. We need a plan."

"And we got one."

Mr. Morgan, Mrs. Morgan, Mr. Fox, Mrs. Fox, Sarah and Ethan turned around and gasped.

Standing there, in complete camouflage uniform, was Erica, Stella, Rory, Benny and Jesse. Stella wore a jumpsuit likewise to the boys, but Erica managed to cut her jumpsuit to an easy moving, but stylish, dress. They were armed with guns and knifes, which made Mr. Fox pretty happy.

Sarah hugged Erica and Stella tightly. Stella and Erica were uncomfortable hugging each other, but did so anyway, settling their differences for this bit. Ethan reunited with Benny, Rory and even Jesse. Ethan's mom noticed the orb in Benny's hand and frowned.

"What's that?" She asked. Benny looked at the orb and smiled. "This orb can absorb all the electricity in that storm. We could use it to make the grey smoke completely harmless." He explained. Rory frowned.

"I know we thought this through, but exactly how are we gonna get it there?" Stella thought about it.

"Hmm...in World Of Ending Zombies," She started, making Rory smile. "Krypton and his gang were facing a storm, sorta like this one. Sally had a device like the orb, and Ronnie sacrificed himself to fly into the storm and zapped all the electricity. Unfortunately, he died in the storm because the electrical currents were too much for him to handle." Jesse frowned. "Spoiler alert! I was gonna pick up the DVD at the library after saving the world from Stern!" He said, half jokingly. Mr. Fox groaned.

"There is no more damn library, and Stern's not dead." Jesse sighed. "Thanks for the recap, Captain Obvious." Mr. Fox took the captain remark as an offense as his wife pulled him back. "Metaphor! It was in a commercial." She said. Mr. Fox frowned as Erica shrugged. "That hotel ad." She added. Mr. Fox nodded as he pulled back. "Watching you blood face." He growled. Jesse hissed at him, threatening him with fangs as Stella slapped him. "Don't threaten anyone, or you're flying through the storm. Those can kill vamps too." Jesse nodded as Ethan sighed.

"We're gonna need a plane though. If we're still on that flying method." He said uneasily. Mrs. Fox suddenly spoke up.

"I can fly a plane. There are some planes there. Me and my husband we'll drive through the storm and absorb the electricity." She said bravely. Sarah nodded, but then she realized what she was saying.

"No!" Sarah exclaimed, running into her parents' arms with teary eyes. "You cannot be like Ronnie. I cannot stay in this World Of Ending Zombies zone! You...you cannot sacrifice yourself." She said. Mr. Fox pulled something out of his pocket as he placed it in Sarah's hands. Her mother cried as Sarah did as well. It was a small photo of them all, when Sarah was 12. Mr. Fox fought back tears as he smiled.

"Stay beautiful, my angel." He said softly. Sarah shook her head in denial. "I can't lose you! Please." She pleaded, looking into her parents' teary eyes.

"I lost everything. A chance at life, a job, my own humanity. I cannot lose my parents. You promised me you wouldn't die in a war." She said. "Please don't leave me." She sobbed. Mrs. Fox hugged her daughter tightly.

"I want you to live, or die and be with us." She said between sobs. Mr. Fox nodded as Sarah said nothing, hugging her parents. Jesse suddenly stepped forward and saluted to Mr. Fox.

"I am sorry. For..uh...everything." He said. Mr. Fox nodded as he firmly shook his hand. Jesse winced a bit; even with his vampire strength, he still felt the pain of his handshake. Mr. Fox nodded.

"My apologies for almost shooting you." He concluded as well. He and his wife said their goodbyes to everyone else as well; they knew that their end was to come.

"Pleasure serving you, sir!" Benny said happily, standing straight and saluting. Erica stifled her giggles as Mr. Fox took of his badge and placed it on his suit. Benny smiled in awe and shock as Mr. Fox saluted back.

"As with you, soldier." He said. Benny grinned as he said goodbye to everyone else. Benny was excitingly bragging about the badge; he always wanted one.

Mrs. Fox was helping Mrs. Morgan with getting the proper head gear they would need as Mr. Fox said goodbye to Mr. Morgan. Finally, Mr. Fox made it to Ethan. He smiled fondly at the boy as he glanced at Sarah and smiled.

"Take good care of her son." He said. Ethan was mentally screaming; he was called son by Sarah's dad. Check! He nodded. "Yes sir!" He exclaimed happily. Mr. Fox glared at him.

"And I swear, you take her virginity and then leave her? My ghost will haunt you for the rest of your life." He threatened. Ethan nodded meekly as he smiled, laughing as they bid farewell to everyone and bravely walked out.

Sarah was in complete sobs as she heard an airplane zoom over the building. Sarah wept, Stella calming her down as they all watched a plane fly into the storm. Sarah, with her vampire hearing, heard screams as a red wave surged through the storm, clearing all the purple sparks in an instant. The storm quieted down as the grey smoke cleared. Something fell from the sky and it burst to flames. Sarah yelled as she broke through her friends and ran out of the airport.

Ethan ran after her, as with all her friends as Benny conjured up water. He splashed it across the flames as Sarah ran into the scene.

It was the plane.

Sarah dug through all the broken pieces when she gasped, choking on tears.

Her parents' corpses laid on the ground, black and burnt like the rest of the bodies. Sarah could recognize their faces so clearly, it hurt. She cried and cried beside them, sobbing into the dirt. Ethan hugged her tightly as the gang all stood there, remembering the Foxes.

"They died." She sobbed. "So I - an undead creature is who basically dead - can live." She wept into Ethan's shirt, tears staining the fabric as Ethan saw Mr. Fox's hat. He dusted it off as he too began to cry with Sarah.

* * *

Sarah said nothing on the walk back to the bunker. They were heading back to eat at the bunker, feeling unsuccessful. Rory cleared the silence.

"Evelyn conjured up some ingredients to make a good dinner." He said. No one said anything as Rory nodded sadly, Stella hugging his shoulder tightly. Erica, Jesse and Benny walked behind everyone as Benny sniffled.

"I cannot believe he gave me a badge." He sniffed. Jesse sighed as he pulled out a hat too. "I think he would want you to have this too." He said quietly, giving the general hat to Benny. Erica smiled at Jesse, mouthing a "thank you" as Benny nodded, hugging Jesse tightly. Jesse gagged slightly as Erica laughed.

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan walked alongside them as Ethan and Sarah were far in the front. They walked in silence as Sarah looked at Ethan.

"Y-Yes." She said quietly. Ethan looked at her through blurry eyes as he frowned. "Yes..what?" Sarah braved a smile as she began her speech.

"Ethan Morgan, my parents would want me to move on. They would. So my way in moving on is talking to you. And I remembered what you asked me, before we fought back the monsters with my parents, you asked me if I wanted to be your girlfriend." Ethan sucked in air as Sarah smiled, linking hands with Ethan. "The answer is yes. Ethan, I loved you ever since you spilled lunch on me, and told me being a vampire is not so bad. You are the love of my life Ethan Morgan. So yes! Oh god yes please Ethan! Ethan be my boyfriend! Be mine!" She begged, a smile on her face. Ethan grinned as he nodded, kissing her tightly. Everyone around her smiled and took the time to clap.

Suddenly, Ethan's mom heard something from the buildings. She caught sight of a monster, invading a young family. She called for Ross and Ethan as they all ran towards the house.

Ross aimed the gun and rapidly fired shots at the monster from afar. Ethan yelled for the family to run, and they exited the ruins of the house. Samantha rushed towards the monster with her husband, Ethan following his parents. Everyone watched in terror as Ethan's dad passed a knife to Samantha, and she stabbed the monster in the chest. It roared, its head crashing through the room and it collapsing, dead. The roof shook as Ross looked in Ethan and Samantha's eyes. The roof above them was about to cave in.

"ROSS!" Samantha yelled. Ethan had tears down his eyes; he knew what he was doing. Everything happened almost in slow motion as Ross closed his eyes and ran towards the two, pushing them to safety and the rocks caving in behind them.

"DAD!" Ethan yelled, being pulled back by Benny and his friends, who had ran to the scene as well. Stella, Sarah and Erica were helping the crying Samantha, who was looking at the rocks that pounded her husband. Ethan was weeping as Sarah hugged him tightly. Rory helped Jesse move the rocks as leaking blood pooled from beneath the rocks. Samantha cried even harder as Ethan shook his head.

"Please." He whimpered. "D-Don't let me see him." He cried in Sarah's shoulder, now in role reversal as Sarah now took care of Ethan. Jesse saw coming monsters behind them, as he frowned.

"We have to go." He said sadly. Ethan cried as he stormed past everyone, running towards the forest as everyone followed sullenly.

They lost three people today.

...

They lost their first battle.

* * *

Stern watched from his place on the building, holding the Lucifractor in his hands. He saw the teens run towards the forest once more. He knew they were safe. And he honestly didn't bother. What mattered was that he killed them the way everyone died. Painfully. He knew Evelyn probably placed a spell so no one would find her and the gang. But if say...a monster destroyed the forest, maybe he would be able to destroy their "safe house" and die a very painful death.

How evil of him? Very.

He called forth a monster and he sent it towards the forest, smiling evilly.

Time to die.

* * *

**A/N- Oh no! Sarah's parents and Ethan's dad died! It is tragic! EEKS!**

**Things go downhill from here. MBAV fan66 will start the second arc to this story, and this marks the halfway point of this story! Or, as far as we know! Jokes!**

**So I leave things in the hands of my fellow fanfic buddy! And I hope you are as excited as I am! Jokes!**

**Anyway, thanks for reading, drop a review, and enjoy life! Peace!**

**TOBN is done *drops mic and exits in a puff of smoke***

**In Fangs, We Trust**


	6. Tragedy Strikes Again

**A/N: Hey, everybody! It's MBAV fan66, bringing you chapter 6 to Dark Days: A World In Ruins!**

**So, that last chapter was really sad, right? Well, guess what? It's not over yet! So, hold on to those tissues cause you're gonna need them!**

**TiredOfBeingNice did an excellent job as always on the last chapter! Let's give her a round of applause! Shall we? Let's! (*starts clapping and cheering*) Lol!**

**Alright! Enough of my babble because it's time for some more action, suspense, and crying as we continue on this crazy and tragic ride! Let us begin!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: TiredOfBeingNice and MBAV fan66 (yep. it's me again. sorry. lol)

Chapter 6: Tragedy Strikes Again

* * *

Back at the bunker, everyone remained silent as they mourn the loss of three every good people, who sacrificed their lives for the ones they love. Eventually, Rory broke the silence.

"So...now what?" asked Rory sullenly, as Stella held him in a tight embrace, rubbing his back comfortingly.

"I don't know...?" replied Benny sadly, looking down at the badge and hat that once belonged to Mr. Fox, as tears began to fall. He then started to sob.

Erica rushed to his side and gave him a warm hug. She knew how hard this must of been on him. Mr. Morgan was like a second father to him and he was just getting to know both of Sarah's parents. Seeing one person die right in front you was hard enough, but witnessing three...that was just too much for anyone to take.

Erica knew how Benny felt because Sarah's parents were like a second family to her. So, she knew how Benny must of felt after witnessing Mr. Morgan's death like that. Mr. Morgan and the Foxes were good people and didn't deserve to die like that.

She took Benny's face in her hands and gently wiped away his tears, as she looked him in his eyes. "Please, don't cry Benny! I know how hard this must be for you. And trust me, you're not in this alone. Mr. and Mrs. Fox gave up their lives so that we may live to see another and they put all their hope into us in stopping Stern and ending this war. And Mr. Morgan gave his life for the one thing that means the most to him in this world. His family. They all died nobly and for a good cause. So, let's not let their sacrifices be in vain. Ok?" said Erica to him softly with a kind smile, as tears threaten to fall from her own eyes as well.

Benny looked at her as he let what Erica had said to him sink in. She was right. He can't just let their deaths be for nothing! He wasn't about to let Stern get away with this and win! One way or another, he WAS going to stop him! Even if it means giving up his own life too!

With a sniffle and a smile of his own, he nodded his head and very quietly gave an 'ok', that was just barely above a whisper, as a response. They both then started to lean in closer to one another, their lips almost making contact. When...

Suddenly, the alarm system started to go off in the bunker, causing the two to pull back abruptly as they both blushed and looked away.

"What now?" sighed Jesse frustratingly and tiredly, out loud.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ethan was in his room curled up in his bed, crying. He hadn't left the room since they had made it back to the bunker. He laid there, staring at a picture of him and his dad, smiling happily while he held up a huge fish. It was taken just last summer, on a bonding father and son camping trip. Benny was the one who took the picture. His dad was nice enough to let Benny tag long with them because he considered Benny like a second son to him. Heck! Benny practically lived there based on how often the teen was always over at the Morgan household.

Ethan remembered that day just like it was yesterday, as he smiled ruefully at the memory. Just then a soft knock could be heard coming from the door.

"Ethan? Ethan, it's Sarah. Are you ok?" asked Sarah softly in concern, as she waited for an answer, but none came. "Ethan, I'm coming in. Ok?" she responded, as she slowly pushed opened the door and walked in, closing it behind her.

She looked over at Ethan and saw his devastated self. She frowned sadly at the poor seer. She went over to him and sat down beside him on the bed. "Ethan..." she began, but than stopped. She didn't even know where to begin. Yes. She too had lost her parents, but it was different. She hardly ever saw or got to spend time with her parents unlike Ethan got to with his. So, of course he was more closer to them than she ever was to her's, but she still loved and cared for them very much regardless of the fact they were hardly ever around because of their military careers.

Sarah was startled from her thoughts when she felt Ethan shift from underneath the sheets, as he moved to sit up in bed. He reached over and picked up the photo that was salvaged from the wreckage that they once called home.

"We took this photo on a father/son bonding trip last summer. We went camping and he even let Benny tag along with us. At first I thought it was going to be lame, but...Dad showed us how fun camping can be. We told ghost stories by the campfire as we roasted marshmallows and weenies. He even joined in on me and Benny's marshmallow stuffing contest. Of course he didn't win, but he was a good sport about it." spoke Ethan, fondly at the memory as he sniffled.

Then a small smile spread across his face. Sarah noticed this and smiled at the mental image that she pictured in her mind at the memorable event he described.

"I caught that fish at Whitechapel Lake. I was so happy and scared at the same time, that I didn't know what to do, so I began to panic." he chuckled lightly. "I thought that the fish was going to pull me in becasue it was so strong. Benny was running around and screaming bloody murder because he was so excited and feaking out himself at the same time, which wasn't really helping much. Then Dad, in a calm and collected manner, approached me and talked me through it as he helped me reel it in. Once we finally got the fish in, we were surprised by how big it was." he continued, staring at the held photo.

Sarah placed her hand on Ethan's hand, that was resting on his leg, and gave it a light squeeze. Ethan's smile then turned into a frown as a tear fell from his eye.

"I'll never forget that day. He told me that he was so proud of me and the person that I have become and that he will always love me. He couldn't ask for a better son than me. And to never stop being who I am. To not be afraid to stand up for what is right and to fight against those who think otherwise." sniffled Ethan, before finally breaking down in tears as he leaned into Sarah's arms.

She held him close and rubbed his arm soothingly, as she rocked back and forth, trying to calm her boyfriend.

"Shh! Shh! It's ok, Ethan. I know. I know." she spoke comfortingly to him.

"I miss him, Sarah!" he sobbed. "I-I don't know if I can do this. We've lost so much already. Stern's just too powerful for us to defeat." he stated in a sad and hushed tone.

Sarah's eyes went wide for a second hearing Ethan say that. She's never known him to just want to give up so easily like that. In the face of every danger that they have ever faced, Ethan was always ready and willing to fight no matter what the cost. She always believed that he would never give up hope and would go down swing if it ever came down to it. The death of Mr. Morgan must of really affected him. If he was like this after seeing a loved one die, then it made her wonder if he'll react the same way once she was gone. She hope not.

"Ethan. Listen to me. I know things seem real grim at the moment, but we can't just give up now. I know that Stern and his monsters are powerful, but everything in this world has a weakness. We just need to find Stern's and then exploit it. Once we do that then it'll be gameover for him and those vile creatures of his." she spoke reassuringly with confidence. "Until then, we can't lose hope. Not now. You know that. I know. And Mr. Morgan and my parents knew that. They put their faith in us in ending this and we owe it to them in making that happen. You're not alone in this. You still have Benny, Erica, Rory, Jane, Mrs. Morgan, Mrs. Weir and the others out there fighting right beside you in this. And one other who will always be by your side..." she continued, before pausing.

Ethan looked up at her with wet and puffy eyes that held a curious and innocent expression in them. Sarah then flashed him a kind and loving smile before replying, "Me."

Ethan realized that she was right. This wasn't like him to just give up so quickly like this. Sure he was sad and scared, but he wasn't alone in feeling like this. He still had the rest of his family and friends by his side to help him through it. His father wouldn't be too proud of him if he just gave up and let fear take over like that. So, with renewed confidence and determination, he was going to defeat Stern and end this stupid war! They were going to find a way to stop him and they will win!

So, he smiled confidently at her and nodded his head, as he leaned in close and kissed her. Sarah kissed back and soon the kiss began to deepen into a make out session between the two. Sarah laid down on her back on the bed as Ethan hovered over her, lips still touching as tounges maneuvered wildly in one another mouths.

When Ethan's hand ran down her left arm, Sarah then pulled her arm back and hissed in pain at the touch. Ethan quickly got up as she sat up too, gently caressing the said arm. He looked at her in confusion and concern.

"Sarah? Are you alright?" he asked, concern laced in his soothing voice.

"Y-Yeah! It's nothing!" she quickly, trying not make a big deal about it. But she winced once again as she felt a small shock of pain shoot through her arm. Ethan than began to grow worried for his vampire girlfriend.

"No! It's not, Sarah!" he stated, worringly. "It's your arm, isn't it?" he asked her. She slowly nodded at him. "Let me see." he commanded kindly and softly to her.

With a sigh, Sarah pulled her shirt sleeve up and a gasp could be heard from Ethan, as his eyes went wide at the large dark purple colored wound.

"S-S-Sarah? What is this?!" he asked alarmingly.

"Back when I saved you from that monster about to attack you, it must of scratched me somehow." she answered sullenly, looking down her hands clasped together in her lap.

There was a pause, before Ethan finally said something. "Why didn't you tell me?" he asked quietly, looking down as well.

"We have enough things to worry about as it is. I didn't want to add more to the situtation by revealing that I've been poisoned by one of those things out there." she answered truthfully. "I hope you're not mad at me?" she asked.

"No. I'm not mad at you. Maybe a bit disappointed that you felt like you couldn't tell me, but not mad. I'll get over it." he replied, looking up at her smiling.

Sarah could tell that his smile was just a mask. She could see the hurt in his eyes and it made her feel terrible for not telling him sooner. She hoped that it didn't change anything between them.

"Maybe Benny's grandma might of found an antidote to counteract the poison!" said Ethan perking up and filled with hope.

Sarah knew that with everything that's happened and them just getting settled into the bunker, that there was probably a slim chance that Mrs. Weir even had a chance to work on an antidote. She was going tell Ethan to not get his hopes up to high, but before she could say anything he was already out the door. So, she just sighed tiredly, knowing what Mrs. Weir was probably going to say.

Minutes later, Ethan came charging in with Evelyn right behind him. When she saw the wound on Sarah's arm, she frowned. Sarah could tell by her expression that the diagnosis wasn't going to be good.

After checking out Sarah's arm, Mrs. Weir sighed heavily. "I'm afraid that there's nothing I can do." she said glumly.

Ethan's face fell. "What? Y-y-you're kidding, right?" asked Ethan shakily.

Mrs. Weir just shook her head 'no'. "I'm afraid that with everything that's been going on, with placing protection spells around the bunker and making potions to help aid you guys, that I just haven't had the time to try and work on an antidote to counteract the monsters poison. I'm sorry, Ethan." she explained apologetically.

Ethan wanted to cry right there. First he lost his home. Then he lost his dad. And now he's going to lose the love of his life, too. This couldn't be happening. Not her. Not when they just became a couple within less of a day. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair.

Sarah saw how the news affected Ethan. She wanted to say that it's ok and that everything was going to be just fine, but she couldn't because she knew that it wasn't going to be true. Sarah just hoped that with time, Ethan could finally heal after her passing and be able to move on with his life. Being the happy and lovable geek that she fell in love with. And live the kind of life that she's always dreamed of.

"So...how long do I have?"

"Not long, by the looks of it. Maybe, an hour tops. I'm not really sure." answered Mrs. Weir sullenly to Sarah.

"I see." she replied meekly and taking a deep breath. "I don't want the others to know. Not yet at least."

"WHAT?! Sarah, you can't be serious?! They need to know! They would want to know right away! We have to tell them!" shouted Ethan, in frustration.

"I know! But...not yet. I'm not ready to face them with that kind of news, just yet. I promise that I'll tell them here real soon." she defended, meekly.

Ethan didn't say anything, but decided to go with Sarah's wishes. Sarah smiled at him when he nodded his head 'ok'. Then she turned to Mrs. Weir with pleading eyes.

Evelyn gave her a small sullen smile before speaking. "If that is what you want, then I'll respect your wishes." she answered, even though she agreed with Ethan's earlier statement.

Sarah smiled back at the old lady. Just then a blaring of the sirens could be heard loudly throughout the room. "The alarm system! Something must be wrong! We better go check it out!" stated Ethan, alarmingly. Sarah pulled down her sleeve before getting up along with Ethan and the three immediately exited the room to see what all the commotion was about.

* * *

"What's happening? Why are the alarms going off?" asked Ethan, entering the computer room along with Sarah and Mrs. Weir.

"We have a problem." stated Mrs. Jones, pressing a button on the computer console.

An image appeared on the screen of one of the monsters rampaging through the woods, destroying everything in it's path. It was huge with huge claws and huge teeth, dripping with poison laced saliva. It let a deep and powerful roar, as it smashed some trees with one of it's arms and some more with it's spiked tail. The thing was frightening to look at.

"A huge monster is currently destroying part of the woods. And at this rate it'll eventually make it's way to the bunker. And if that happens, then..." started Mrs. Jones.

"It'll destroy the bunker." finished Benny, eyes going wide at the realization. "Guys! We can't let that happen!" he exclaimed in fear and worry.

"Stern sent that thing here. He must know that our safehouse is somewhere in the woods and hopes to either destroy us by destroying the bunker or to make sure that we no longer have anywhere left to hide." stated Jesse, bitterly.

"What do we do?" ask Jane.

"We go out there and stop it!" stated Rory with determination.

"But we don't have a plan! And did you get a good look at the size of that thing?! It's bigger than the ones that we've faced so far! How are we suppose to take down something like that?!" stressed Erica.

"I don't know! But we got to do something before it reaches us." replied Ethan, calmly.

"I agree! We need to act fast before it's too late. There has to be a way to stop it. We just need to figure out how." said Sarah, with some confidence.

In the back of Benny's mind, he came up with a possible solution. "Well..." he started meekly, not really wanting to tell them his suggestion. "While looking through some of Grandma's spell books, I came across a very powerful spell called The Termination Spell."

Mrs. Weir's eyes went wide at the mention of that spell. She knew exactly what that spell was and how powerful and dangerous it is to cast. "Benny! You can't be serious?! That spell is too dangerous to do, especially for a spellmaster at your level! I won't allow it!" she yelled at him in worry.

"I have to, Grandma! It's the only thing that might be able to stop that monster from destroying the bunker and us with it!" defended Benny.

Everyone had confused expressions over why this spell was such a big deal to do. "What makes the spell so dangerous to perform?" asked Mr. Keaner.

With a heavy sigh, Evelyn explained. "The Termination Spell is very powerful and dangerous, even for powerful magic users such as myself. The spell uses the caster's magic and turns it into a powerful concentrated blast that will completely annihilate it's target. But it usually comes with a sacrifice. And that sacrifice is usually the spell caster's life." she said, her voice sounding sad near the end.

Everyone was in shock. "Benny! No! Are you crazy! You can't do a spell that like! You just can't! I won't let you!" shouted Erica at Benny, with tears forming in her eyes.

"Yeah, B! I agree! There has to be another way to take that thing out?! We just need to figure it out, is all! I've already lost my dad! I'm about to lose my..." spoke Ethan, cutting himself off when he realized that he almost told them Sarah was dying. He quickly thought up a cover. "mind, because of it! I don't want to lose my best friend, too!" he pleaded with Benny.

Benny stood there in silence. He saw the looks on Erica's and Ethan's faces. He then looked around the room at his other friends. He saw the looks of sadness and pleading in their eyes, so with a heavy sigh he agreed not to do the spell. Everyone had looks of relief on their faces, but what they didn't know was that he was still planning on doing the spell but only as a last resort.

Once that was all settled, they geared up and headed out the door to the surface. They had to move quickly because it would only be a matter of time before the monster would reach the bunker. So, Stella climbed onto Rory's back as he zoomed off, along with Benny on Erica's, Ethan on Sarah's, and Jesse following right behind them. Ethan was a little hesitant at first because he could see the fatigue in Sarah's eyes and how weak she was starting to become from the poison, but she reassured him that it was ok and that she could handle it.

* * *

As soon as they got there, they immediately began attacking the monster, but everything that they did wasn't working. All they seemed to do was just make the beast even more angrier and what was even more worse was the fact that they were almost out of ammo for their guns. Things were going down hill fast.

"It's no use! It's just too strong! We need to retreat back to the bunker and just pack up everything and flee while we still can!" suggested Stella, while taking a couple of shots at the monster.

"We can't just abandon it! It's the only safe place that we can go too! We have nowhere else to go!" replied Erica, disagreeing with Stella.

"Well it's either that or we can all just sit back and wait to DIE!" hissed Stella back, angrily.

"Ok! That's it!" yelled Erica.

Erica was about ready to go over and attack the red head until she felt a hand on her shoulder, stopping her. It was Benny's.

"We're suppose to be fighting the monster. Not each other." stated Benny firmly.

Erica's angry expression then turned into an apologetic one. She whispered a sorry to Stella and she gave a nod.

"But I do agree with you Erica. We can't just abandon the bunker. It's our only safehouse and if we just left then we would be sitting ducks for Stern. But I also agree with Stella. It's better to just leave the bunker with our lives intact rather than just waste our time defending it when we know that's going to be a lost cause in the end and wind up dead in the process. The whole town, no, the whole WORLD is depending on us! We need to be smart about this." he said, then he looked down and pulled out the badge that Mr. Fox had given him before his demise. Even though he didn't really know Sarah's parents that well, he still felt like they were family. Probably being at war like this kind of makes you feel like that with your fellow comrades.

"We need to retreat for now. I'm sure that's what Mr. Fox would of done." he said in a sadden tone.

Hearing this, everybody agreed that it was the best thing to do. Then the monster let out a mighty roar at the teens. They forgot all about Mr. big and ugly, for a minute.

"What about him? If we leave now, it might just follow us back to the bunker." questioned Jesse, nodding his head in the monster's direction.

Benny knew what he had to do as he spoke up.

"Go! I'll stay here and hold it off, while you guys get away." said Benny, with confidence.

"Benny, no! There's no way that you can hold off that monster by yourself and be able to make a get away!" exclaimed Erica in worry.

He then took both of Erica's hands in his and then stared deeply into her gorgeous eyes, as he spoke softly to her.

"Erica. I'll be just fine. I only have to hold him off long enough for you guys to escape and then once I think you're far enough from here, I'll do a teleportation spell and transport myself to where you all are."

"Are you sure?" she asked, meekly. He nodded his. "Then promise me that you'll be ok and will come back to me in one piece." she said seriously to him.

Benny smiled. "I promise." he said.

She nodded an 'ok' and smiled. Benny brought a hand up to Erica's face and caressed it gently with his thumb, before then moving in closer to her and placing his lips on her's. When they broke apart, they both smiled and rested their foreheads on each other. Benny ran his fingers through her long golden hair, as the two enjoyed the moment for a brief second together before stepping back.

"Now. Go! Before it's too late!" shouted Benny to the gang.

Everyone then took off in the opposite direction, back towards the bunker. Erica briefly stopped for a moment and looked back at the young spellmaster, before following the others.

* * *

Benny just stood there and watched them go with a smile on his face. He then sighed heavily and turned to face the monster before him. He knew that he wasn't going to be able to keep the promise that he made with Erica, just moments ago. He knew it was going to hurt her deeply, and he really wished that it didn't have to come to this, but it did. Sure he could hold off the monster long enoungh for them to escape, but trying to escape himself was another story. He lied to the girl that he loves, by saying he would use a teleportation spell to escape, but in truth he hadn't even mastered it, yet. So, currently the spell was useless to him.

And even if he did, the monster would still be alive, destroying the forest and would eventually find the bunker. And then if they left the bunker, Stern would easily find them and send out more of those monsters to kill them or they would constantly always be on the move. No. This option was better. If he did the termination spell and sacrificed his own life, then the monster would be dead and everyone would be safe. He just hoped that they would forgive him after this.

"Who knows...maybe I might get lucky and not die in the process." scoffed Benny, sarcastically to no one.

He then lifted his head to the sky with a scowl.

"WE'RE GOING TO BEAT YOU, STERN! ONE WAY OR ANOTHER! YOU HEAR ME?! WE WILL FIND A WAY TO DESTROY YOU!" he shouted, knowing that Stern was prbably somewhere watching.

The monster let out another mighty roar, as Benny looked backdown towards the monster with a serious and determined look. He slowly lifted his hand towards the foul creature. He closed his eyes and recited the spell that would lead to his and the monster's demise. A bright white ray of light emerge from his hand as it stuck the monster in it's chest. It roared out in pain as the light grew in brightness, engulfing the entire area around them and the forest. A single tear was seen falling down the spellmaster's cheek.

"Sorry everyone. I hope you all can forgive me."

* * *

Thanks to vampire speed, the gang stood about a mile away from the bunker and were waiting for Benny. Erica's mind was racing with one thought only. The kiss. To her it felt...different. It didn't feel the way that it should of. Not that she's ever kissed Benny before, except for that one time when he used that love potion on her and Sarah, but she wasn't in control of her actions back then, so there was no real meaning behind it.

Recently, she had began to develop feelings for a certain goofy spellmaster. She wanted to tell him so badly about it and confess her love for him too, but with all the supernatural drama that's been happening, she just hasn't had the time to do it.

But that kiss that she just recently shared with him did have meaning in it, but not the right one that she wanted. It felt like more of a good-bye kiss than a passionate one filled with love, and that scared her greatly. Just what was he thinking about when he gave her that kiss?

"Where is he? He should of been here by now?" asked Erica, growing more worried by the second.

Her question was answered by the rumbling sound of an explosion of light coming off in the distance, from where they were just at with the monster. Everyone's hearts sank. They all knew what that explosion of light had meant.

Benny had used the termination spell.

A high pitched scream could be heard echoing throughout the air.

"BENNY! NOOOOO!"

Screamed out Erica, as she then broke down in tears on her knees. Sarah quickly ran to her best friend's side and knelt down to hold her. Erica just cried into her shoulders, staining Sarah's shirt with her tears of distraught and devastation. Tears fell from everyone's eyes at the sight. This couldn't be happening. Not another lost to the team.

Rory released Stella from the embrace that he was holding her in, as she made her way over to the crying and heartbroken blonde. She placed a comforting hand on Erica's shoulder, trying to condole her. Sure they never seen eye to eye or got along for that matter, but she still considered her a friend. Just more of a...frienemy, but a friend nonetheless.

Erica looked up at her and then placed a hand over Stella's and smiled ruefully at the red head. It was nice to know that even in times of need that they could set their differences aside and be civil friends to one another. Stella returned the rueful smile back to her, as she knelt down beside Erica, too. The three girls sat there in a comforting girl hug embrace, as tears ran down their faces.

"You know that he loved you, right?" spoke Sarah, quietly to the grieving blonde vampire.

With a sniffle, Erica wiped the tears from her pretty eyes. "Yeah." she said softly with a small smile.

She always knew that. But know it was too late to do anything about it. And she regretted not ever telling him that she loved him too.

* * *

After taking a mintue to recover from their grief of Benny's death, they finally made it back to the bunker. They were all still outside, about ready to go in when Sarah stumbled, almost falling down if Ethan hadn't caught her in time.

"Thanks." she smiled weakly to him, while slightly panting and looking a bit pale.

"No probelm." replied Ethan, with a slightly worried face.

Everybody stopped and turned to look at the duo, all slightly worried themselves.

"Sarah? Are you alright?" asked Stella.

"Yeah! I'm fine. I-I'm just a little tired and worn out from the fighting and all the running. No big deal. I just need to rest some and then I'll be alright." she replied, trying her best to sound convicing.

Ethan looked at her with a sadden frown. He knew that she was lying and that she was getting worser by the minute.

"Sarah. You need to tell them." whispered Ethan to her.

"N-no. I can't. Not right now." she panted.

Erica heard them with her vampire hearing. "Tell us what, Sarah?"

Sarah's eyes went wide and she glanced over towards Ethan. She could see the pleading look in his brown eyes and she sighed, facing back towards the others standing on her own. She felt a little woozy, but ignored it.

"Before my parents and Ethan's dad died and we were ambushed by a bunch of Stern's monsters. I was scratched by one, while saving Ethan." she explained, sadly.

Gasps could be heard from Erica, Rory, Stella, and Jesse. "What?! Sarah! Why didn't you say anything? We might of been able to do something!" replied Erica, in shock. She was a little mad at her best friend, but she was more scared for her than frustrated.

"There was just too much going on right now. And I figured that we could use less problems to worry about. And besides, Mrs. Weir has been too busy with everything to find a cure for the poison. I'm sorry." she said, the world around her was now starting to spin.

"And you knew about this all along?!" snapped Jesse to Ethan.

Ethan didn't say anything and looked down at the ground in shame, so Sarah did.

"Leave him alone Jesse! He only just recently found out himself a little while ago, before the alarms went off. He wanted to tell you guys, but I made him promise not to. Until I felt like the time was right." she defended.

There was a brief slience, before someone asked the dreaded question that's been on everyone's mind.

"How long do you have?" spoke Rory, quietly.

Sarah opened her mouth, about ready to answer his question when the dizziness finally got to her and she collasped. Before she lost consiousness, Sarah could hear the faint cries of her friends and one that stood out very clearly to her. His worried voice rang throughout her ears like a bell. It broke her heart to hear it sound so worried. The sound of her boyfriend, calling out to her.

"SARAH!"

Then everything went black.

* * *

**A/N: Duh-duh-duuuh!**

**What's gonna happen now?! Benny's dead! Sarah's extremely weak and passed out from it! Things are just going down hill for Team V, isn't it? It looks like Stern just might win!...Or will he? Can the gang turn things around in their favor? Or will they lose everything and everyone?**

**Stay with us, cause there's still a lot of action ahead and a shocking twist to come in chapters still ahead! Until then I am MBAV fan66 and I'm signing off for this chapter and turning it over to TOBN! And don't forget to leave us a review, too! Bye!**

**MBAV fan66**


	7. Imagine A World

**A/N- Wassup? It be TOBN here with a new chapter for Dark Days: A World In Ruins!**

**So last chapter, y'all were downright pissed at us for killing off Benny and possibly Sarah. But don't you worry! Things will get better. I am sadly writing the more darker chapter, the more sadder one, but don't ya worry! Next one will actually be a happier one. The more lighter one perhaps. But then again, who knows because this is an apocalyptic story after all ;)**

**Shoutouts to...**

**EmmALewisS- To answer your question, they tried to save people in the storm cloud, but failed, and they went back to reload weapons and stuff. However, after the loss of so many people, their moral was pretty low at the moment. Basically, everything was happening so fast that things kinda...well...got neglected for the people of Whitechapel. But don't you worry! We will [try] to fix that. But anyway, I am glad you are enjoying the story! Thanks for your review!**

**123456789vampire- Spoiler alert: We are NOT killing Rory, so you are gonna be alright. But hey, sorry if you feel very sad. Don't worry though; we're gonna "take a sad song and make it better" if you catch my drift. So don't worry. And don't kill us. Thanks for your review! :)**

**funkybananas47- What the hell indeed! I cannot believe you fanfic buddy! *Looks at fanfic buddy teasingly* I am just kidding. We both have blame in this. But we should all be blaming Stern. That little- ANYWAY, don't you worry, because things WILL get better [hopefully ;)] and thanks for your review!**

**And with that, let us begin, shall we? Drop a review and start reading! NOW! Jokes!**

**ENJOY!**

**P.S- I don't own the song. John Lennon does. I just thought it would be a small little touch ;)**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: MBAV fan66 and TiredOfBeingNice (I'm back peoples!)

Chapter 7: Imagine A World

* * *

The first thing Sarah Fox saw when she woke up was Ethan.

He was by her side, crying as his tears soaked the bed sheets. Sarah winced at the pain of her lover; her time was running out slowly, and she couldn't waste a single second of it. Not if she could help it.

"E-E-Ethan." She croaked, her voice barely audible as his brown eyes landed on her. He broke down into sobs as he hugged Sarah softly, kissing her on the cheek repetitively. Sarah cried freely as Ethan ran his fingers down her soft, brown hair. His eyes were glassy and his vision was blurred by tears as he looked at Sarah's paled condition. Spots of purple could be seen on her skin, and the fact that she was slowly dying made her cry even harder.

"S-Sarah!" He said with a smile, looking earnestly into his lover's eyes as he placed a kiss on her lips. Sarah winced at the pressure, but kissed back anyway, trying to force herself to smile. She looked at Ethan with wide, brown eyes, that blinked every now and then.

"Ethan...I just wanted t-to say..." She said with a small cough. But her voice was drowned out by Ethan, who had already started calling all his friends from outside the room.

"Guys! Guys Sarah is awake!" He yelled. Sarah fought really hard to stay awake, looking at Ethan with blinking eyes. "Ethan, I am dying. Ethan, I don't want to die!" She wailed, becoming pretty desperate now. Ethan didn't know how to respond to that as he began to cry even harder. Sarah winced at her boyfriend's tears, one by one them dropping on her lap. She sniffled as people began to enter the room, sullen faces.

"S-Sarah." Erica managed to breath out, running up to her best friend's side. Sarah sniffed as she looked at her blonde friend. "E-Erica..." She wheezed, coughing. "I-I am gonna miss you." She managed to say out. Erica shook her head, almost wanting to bawl in a corner.

"Oh Sarah!" She sobbed. "You can't die on me. You just can't. Whatever happens today, you aren't dying. Dying is not on what of your to do lists SARAH FOX!" She yelled, replacing her tears with an unknown anger she couldn't decipher. Stella managed to calm down the broken Erica, who broke down to tears once more. Erica shook her head.

"I lost Benny already. I can't lose you too Sarah. I just can't." Erica managed to say through the tears. Ethan wanted to cry at the moment.

A while ago [Ethan couldn't even count the time anymore], he had lost Benny to Stern once more, his best friend sacrificing himself for the safety of his friends. It was a selfless act, and even after searching all over, they couldn't find Benny's ashes or his body. Evelyn had drawn to the conclusion her grandson's body was either taken by a monster, or disintegrated, the ashes blowing off and being scattered over the city. But Ethan couldn't bear to hear the words, his mind not drawing away from the ear piercing screams of Erica crying and Benny's last yell. He couldn't take it.

"E-Erica...please don't get d-discouraged." She said with a sniffle and a flinch, feeling really cold. Rory was next to talk as he cleared his throat.

"I don't...I don't want this to be goodbye." He said. "The thrill of all our adventures, the excitement when you walk into the room, that would all be gone if you leave this world." He sniffled, crying now as he wanted to hug his best friend. "Please." He begged. "Don't go Sarah."

Sarah didn't like seeing all her friends cry as she shook her head. "I...I am not going anywhere R-Rory. T-This is just a r-r-really bad dream." She started to pour out her feelings onto her friends.

"Dammit guys.." She started. "I thought this was all a bad dream when it started. When this happened, when Stern called down World War III, when everything crumpled and when we lost everyone we loved...I thought it was a nightmare. I wasn't as brave as you guys thought I was. Damn, even when I lost my family...I was thinking how evilly surreal this was. This was not happening. But now, as I lay here, slowly being poisoned by a monster out of all things," She took a try at laughing, but getting no laughs. She coughed as she started again.

"I realize how real this all is. But please, please don't cry for me. It isn't important. I am not as important as your survival." Stella shook her head.

"Goddammit Sarah you mean the world to us!" Stella cried out, letting her tough aura break down as she choked back on tears. "I may have not known you for so long, but seriously, by just looking at you and just seeing your smile...damn Sarah you already look like you did so much for everyone already." She said, crying now as her tears rolled down her cheeks onto Rory's shirt. The parents and Jesse walked in suddenly, seeing Sarah's condition as Mr. Jones made way to check Sarah's vitals. He gulped; things were not improving. But he looked around to see everyone's sad tears and faces, and sighed.

How can you break out the news that someone you loved was dying?

"Um...well...things might turn up from here. Your body is certainly trying to survive." He said, half lying. Sarah looked earnestly at Erica's dad, and sighed.

"Please Mr. Jones. Don't lie to me." She said, closing her eyes as she found her breathing steady and heavy. Not wanting this to be the end, Ethan shook her awake once more. Sarah took an intake of breath as she wearily looked at everyone. Evelyn stroked her hair.

"Oh dear...I am sorry. I am sorry I didn't try to find a cure sooner. I am so so so sorry." She said, tears running down her aged face. Sarah shook her head. "This is not your fault Mrs. Weir." Evelyn looked away.

"I lost too many Sarah. You are family to me." She said honestly. Sarah let the tears run down her eyes as Mrs. Keaner smiled.

"You always knew how to make my baby smile." She said, looking at the blushing Rory. "Rory always told us how much you mean to him. And now, I could tell that he has been a huge part of your...vampirism, and vice versa." Jane sniffed.

"You were the best dancer ever. Always beating me. And now you have to leave, so young and so quickly. Why?! Why do you have to leave us?" Jane wailed, hugging the edge of Sarah. Sarah was crying a lot now because Jane was always like a little sister to her. Leaving her, leaving this world...she couldn't do it. She just couldn't. She didn't want to say goodbye, and she didn't want to leave.

"J-Jane..." Sarah managed to say as the air around her thickened. "I love you."

Jane cried in her mother's sweater, crying hardly as she couldn't say anything about that. Ethan wiped the tears with his sleeve, knowing how much Jane loved Sarah, and how much Sarah loved Jane. It was terrible seeing both the girls he loved cry...

"No."

The simple word came from the silent vampire as he shook his head. "No, I can suck the poison right now. Dear lord, kill me, but Sarah Fox, you are not dying on me. You can't. I loved you, even if you didn't love me back. Dammit Sarah Fox! I love you. I still do. But whatever feelings stand, I am not losing you right now." Evelyn tried to stop Jesse as his fangs popped out.

"Jesse! Jesse it is impossible!" Evelyn yelled, pulling the teary eyed vampire away from Sarah's body. Sarah was bawling now as Evelyn spun Jesse around to look her in the eye.

"I swear Jesse Black, that was the most..genuine thing you ever did in your life. No one could be more selfless than you could have been just at this moment. But alas...it's impossible. It has gone too far, and if you suck the poison out now, you will end up killing Sarah and killing yourself in an instant. I am sorry Jesse, but you can't save her." Evelyn said with a sad frown, tears beading her eyes.

"Jesse...I may not love you as much as I do with Ethan..." Sarah started, coughing as Jesse looked away, not wanting anyone to see him cry. "But I love you too Jesse. No matter what you did to me in the past...you paid amends for your mistakes...and I can't ask for anymore." She said sincerely. Jesse shook his head.

"This is all my fault. If I didn't turn you, you wouldn't be able to even know about Stern. You wouldn't know about us. Dammit, you would be safe from the poison. I did you so wrong Sarah...how can you forgive me?" He asked. Sarah smiled.

"Because Jesse," She said with a feeble smile. "You were the one who introduced me to this crazy, surreal world. Jesse, without you, I wouldn't know the people I know today. I wouldn't have been able to say these people were my friends. I wouldn't be able to tell the stories I have learned, that I have lived. Heck, I would be dead by now if I wasn't a badass vampire, fighting supernatural with my friends." She then looked at all her crying friends.

"Guys, I wouldn't take back a single second of the life I had. I would die again to relive them. I am so so privileged that I can say I died beside the people I love. I am so privileged to say that I died fighting for Whitechapel. My home. My life." She said, taking the time to cry again.

Ethan watched his lover suffer, stroking her hair and by the looks of it, knew that he was losing her. He had to say something.

But no words flowed out as Ethan sniffed.

"You know Sarah...you know what this means..." Sarah looked at Ethan and frowned. "What? Baby, what?" She asked. Ethan looked at Evelyn, who smiled.

"What Ethan is trying to say Sarah," Evelyn took over. "Is that your wish is coming true." Sarah blinked confusingly. "What? What dream?" She asked. Evelyn smiled.

"Sarah, you're dying as a human."

Sarah blinked twice, not believing the words she heard. She placed her hand on her chest, when she felt a slow and steady heartbeat. She motioned Stella to hold up a mirror, and she saw her reflection, fading in and out. She cried.

"H-How? H-How is this possible?" She asked, not believing what she was seeing. Ethan sighed.

"Mrs. Weir told me that once the poison courses through a vampire, it starts eating all the DNA. But vampire venom blocks that, it covers your strand of DNA. So the poison had to soak that out first. The poison already did that, and that was why you collapsed earlier. Because you didn't have the strength. You were a human when you woke up again. Now, it is eating your DNA out and is killing you slowly." Ethan explained, hating how the words felt in his mouth.

"S-So...I am going to heaven. I am gonna see my parents." She said, her eyes twinkling with tears. Ethan nodded with a grin, wiping the tears again and again. "Sarah!" He said happily. "I love you no matter what happens." He said with teary eyes. Sarah's heart was fading; she could feel it. So before she left, she had one request.

"E...E-Ethan." She stammered, looking at Ethan's glassy eyes. Ethan nodded. "Yes Sarah?"

"Do something for me please," She said, wanting to roll on her side. Her head lolled onto Ethan's palm, rolling over it and letting it rest on his head. "Sarah? What is it?" Ethan asked, getting impatient. She was dying. She had to say it now.

"Please...please sing for me. Sing the song I love. Please love." She whispered, her voice barely audible. Ethan's mind was blank, before he finally remembered. He looked at Sarah with pleading eyes as he nodded. "O-Of course." He said, his voice cracking slowly. He stopped for a while, trying to remember the words before softly singing them. The gang recognized the song as they hummed along.

"Imagine, there's no heaven," Ethan sang softly, voice cracking at every word. "It's easy if you try." He said, sniffling. He couldn't finish this song without crying. Erica took a breath as she began to sing.

"No hell, below us." She sang. "Above us only sky." Rory sang along. Mrs. Jones smiled softly.

"Imagine, all the people." She sang, grasping hands with her husband. "Living, for today!" He sang softly as Sarah closed her eyes, her breathing keeping pace.

Jesse took a breath; he didn't like singing in front of everyone. He hated it in fact. But Sarah...it was for Sarah.

"Imagine, there's no countries." He sang. "It isn't hard to do..." His soft voice pierced Sarah's mind and heart forever. "Nothing to kill or die for." Mrs. Morgan sung. Surprisingly, Jane did as well. "And no religion too." She sang. Everyone linked hands as they sung for Sarah.

"Imagine all the people! Living life, in peace...yoo hoo!" They raised their voices as Mr. Keaner led the gang on.

"You may say, I'm a dreamer!" He sang softly. "But I'm not the only one..." Mrs. Keaner finished off. Ethan looked into Sarah's brown eyes, seeing how beautiful they were in the sun, smiling at how much she was enjoying this.

"I hope some day, you'll join us." Ethan sang. "And the world, will be as one."

"Imagine no possessions..." Rory sang. "I wonder if you can." Stella sung at last, smiling at Sarah with teary eyes.

"No need for greed or hunger, a brotherhood of man." Stella continued to sing. Erica smiled as she brought the whole gang together in melody, thinking of how much Benny would've enjoyed this. She fought off tears.

"Imagine, all the people, sharing all the world! Yoo hoo!" They sung. Sarah smiled as she watched all her friends sing.

"You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one." They sang in unison. Ethan leaned in to kiss Sarah's lips, whispering the words in her ear. She sniffled as she felt a tear from Ethan's eyes drop on her weakened skin.

"I hope, someday, you'll join us..." He whispered, voice barely audible. Sarah smiled as she let out a scratchy sigh, whispering the words as well.

"And the world...will live as one..."

Sarah closed her eyes for the last time in her new human life, and she died with a fragile smile stuck to her face. Ethan felt her heartbeat fade as he shook his head, denying the fact it was the end of Sarah Fox.

"No..." He said with teary eyes. "No no no no no no NO!" He yelled, shaking Sarah's stilled body. "You're the one that I want my darling!" He yelled. "I can't live without you! You can't leave me! You are the one that I need...oh Sarah.." He wailed, his useless tears shedding down onto Sarah's shirt.

"I am sorry Ethan." Jesse said, for the first time, wrapping his arm around the boy. "She's gone."

* * *

Ethan sat in his room, trying to cope with the fact his one and only was dead.

Suddenly, the lights in the bunker started to flicker, and things around him started to burn. Ethan, scared in all hell, ran out of his room to see half the bunker being burned. He found everyone near the ladder that led them out of the bunker as he saw Stella. He frowned.

"What's happening?!" He yelled, fire almost starting to catch up. Stella frowned. "Someone set this whole bunker on fire. We need to go now." She informed. The fire was catching up to Ethan, but he remembered something as he refused to go.

"Wait! We have to get Sarah! We have to get Sarah!" He yelled. Stella shook her head as she grabbed his wrist. "We can't now Ethan! We have to go, and Sarah didn't want you to die!" She yelled. Ethan sighed as he went up, trying to fight off tears.

When they reached the surface, the bunker was clearly destroyed at this point. Jesse sighed as he plopped all the guns on the ground, Mr. Jones and Mr. Keaner helping him.

"These are all weapons we ended up saving. But nothing else. Just some guns and some potions." Ethan sighed. "Who destroyed the bunker?" Erica took a breath as she closed her eyes, looking at all her friends.

"Only one person could have done this." She said. Rory narrowed his eyes dramatically.

"Stern."

* * *

**A/N- Ooh! Things are getting real from here my friends.**

**This chapter really got to me...Sarah dying and now they are on their own...it is so sad! But next chapter is [kinda] better...because not only will we see Stern for the first time in forever! Jokes!**

**In the meanwhile, drop a review, and I spin the chapters around to MBAV fan66! Knock 'em dead fanfic buddy! Jokes!**

**In Fangs, We Trust**


	8. Turning Point

**A/N: Hey, guys! It's MBAV fan66 with chapter 8 of Dark Days: A World In Ruins!**

**So, once again, the last chapter was pretty sad with Sarah saying her good-byes and then dying. (*sniff sniff*) But on a bittersweet side of it though, at least she was able to die as a human! So that's good...right?**

**Anyways, TiredOfBeingNice gave us another excellent chapter, didn't they? Not that it's excellent that Sarah died, but that it was great to read and so emotional and...yeah. And now I think I might need a tissue, again. Lol!**

**And OMG! I think that this might be the longest chapter in this story so far! Wow! Lol!**

**So, all the sad stuff is finally out of the way, with all the deaths and stuff, but what's gonna happen now that Team V's secret hideout has been destroyed by Stern? You'll just have to read to find out my friends! ;) But I will say this, there's going to be a little surprise for all you fans out there that's going to make you freak in this chapter! Lol! TiredOfBeingNice knows what I'm talking about! Hehehe! ;)**

**So, enough with the rambling and let's get on with it! Oh! And don't forget to enjoy it, too!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: TiredOfBeingNice and MBAV fan66 (*winks at you with a smile*)

Chapter 8: Turning Point

* * *

"Now what?" asked Jane, meekly. She was scared and afraid, as she tried to hold back her tears. Mrs. Morgan saw her daughter on the verge of tears and brought her in close to her, in a comforting embrace, rubbing Jane's back.

"Well. It's obvious that we can't stay here, anymore. Stern knows our location." pointed out Stella.

"Yeah! And he's probably already sent more of those monsters here after us to finish the job." added Jesse.

Ethan stood there as he watched the bunker continue to burn, along with Sarah's body. Now he wouldn't be able to give her the proper burial that she deserved, thanks to Stern. Because of that man he had lost his possible future in-laws, his father, his best friend, and now his girlfriend. The bunker wasn't currently the only thing that was on fire at that moment. Ethan's heart was now a blaze, not with fire but with hate and determination towards the man responsible for all this chaos and heartache that they all had to suffer through.

"We better go, then before they show up. Come on." he finally spoke with not emotion, after a moment of silence. He then started to walk off, back towards town, never looking back at the burning bunker.

Everyone looked at each other in silence, before following behind him.

* * *

It has been about 3 months since Sarah's and Benny's deaths, and the destruction of the bunker. And in that time, Team V has been moving from place to place as Stern was on their tails constantly. Eventually they found an abandon warehouse to stay at. Along the way they had managed to pick up a few survivors too, who would help out were help was needed.

After the loss of Sarah, Ethan had changed. He was more driven and determined to stop Stern more now than ever. His friends and family had noticed a slight change in his personality too. He would mostly keep to himself, hardly ever saying a word unless he need to or if they were planning their next move. Other than that, he was pretty much silent and he never smiled.

In the beginning, he would get into arguments with the others about Benny being dead. Ethan had refused to believe that his best friend was dead for some strange reason. After awhile he finally accepted it, but he still had that nagging feeling deep inside him. Ever since then everybody has been a little worried about him, especially his mom and Jane. They never saw Ethan like this before.

Erica had changed too after lossing Sarah and Benny. She wasn't as mean or as bitter anymore towards her nerdy friends. She grew to be more nicer and friendlier and less judging. It was like the old Erica was back. She thought that by being her old self again was what Sarah and Benny probably would of wanted for her.

But at nights, Erica would have terrible nightmares of the images of the day that Benny died, replaying over and over again. Luckily, she had Stella there to comfort her whenever she would wake up in tears. Her and Stella have actually gotten really close, lately. They no longer despised each other. In fact, the deaths of their dear friends had brought them closer together as friends, now. Maybe even BEST friends. Stella knew that she could never really replace Sarah, but she was going to do her best to be the kind of friend that she was to Erica.

As for Rory, he and Stella had became a couple now. Rory was happy to have her, but at the same time he felt kind of bad. Here he was with the love of his life, while his other two friends had lost theirs. Rory no longer acted as immature like he once did, although he still had his moments sometimes, but the experience of all the loss and pain that the group had to suffer caused him to be more serious and to grow up some.

Even Jesse had changed a little. His change was like Erica's. He wasn't as cruel or self centered like he was before. He now truly wanted to be a better person. He didn't even tease Ethan or Rory anymore. Especially Ethan. Jesse could relate to what he was going through right now because he too had to suffer the loss of losing ones closest to you. That was one of the many downsides to being immortal. Watching as your loved ones all die, while you are still living. That's why he turned Sarah. He loved her so much that he didn't want to have to go through life living without her after she died of old age. So he turned her so they could be together forever...or so he thought. It seems that vampires aren't truly really all that immortal after all.

Things were looking pretty grim for the gang. It seemed like no matter what they did Stern was always one step ahead of them. And there seemed to be no end to the monsters that are terrorizing the town, or what's left of it, as long he's still alive and possessed the power of the Lucifractor. It was like he was invincible.

* * *

As they were holding their next planning session in a small room in the warehouse, gunshots and screaming could be heard coming from outside.

"What was that?" asked Jesse alarmed.

"It sounded like gunshots! We must be under attack! Stern must of found us!" exclaimed Stella worringly.

Everybody ran out of the room and then out off the warehouse, to find that they were indeed under attack by the monsters. To defend the warehouse, they immediately jumped into action.

"Take that you ugly son of a bitch!" cursed/yelled Stella, firing her gun at one of the monsters.

When one of the bullets hit the monster in his heart, it's heart exploded. Leaving the monster dead. The bullets that they used weren't ordinary bullets. About a half month eariler, Ethan had come up with the idea of making enchanted bullets that would explode on contact. Evelyn liked the idea and immediately set to work on it.

"DIE!" shouted Rory, firing his round of bullets at them.

* * *

"Eat magical bullets! Bitches!" yelled Erica, in fury, firing her gun.

But then she ran out of bullets and before she could reload, a monster was already upon her about ready to strike. Erica closed her eyes waiting for the inevitable, when she heard it let out a pained roar and smelt smoke. She looked up and saw that the monster was on fire, as it then fell to the ground, dead. She looked up to see just who set the beast on fire. She couldn't believe her eyes. It was someone that she thought that she would never see again.

"No. It can't be. But he's dead!" said Erica, quietly in disbelief and astonishment.

The figure looked at her and smiled that goofy smile of his. Tears welled up in Erica's eyes as she then ran towards the figure, smiling. She embraced the figure in a warm hug, accidently using her vampire strength on the poor teenager.

"E-E-Erica! I c-can't breath and y-you're kind of h-hurting me!" choked out the person, glad to see her too, with his arms around her.

Erica quickly released the person from her death hug and smiled sheepishly at the figure. "Sorry." she sniffled, wipping tears of joy from her eyes.

"It's alright! I'm glad to see you too!" he said softly, and then placed his hands on the sides of her face and brought Erica into a sweet, but passionate kiss. "And I've been waiting to do that for months, now!" he added, with grin.

"Oh, Benny." she said giggling. Now, that was the kind of kiss that she wanted from him. "I thought that I had lost you! How did you survive? And where have you been for all these months?" questioned Erica, with a frown. She then noticed something strange about the spell master. He was wearing sunglasses, but why? Benny never wore sunglasses. He wasn't a vampire, was he?

Benny then frowned. "I'll explain everything later, but right now the others need our help. Here." he said slightly serious, handing Erica a dagger sized blade.

Erica looked at him quizzically. Benny chuckled at her expression and how cute she looked when she was confused. "It's like the bullets that you guys are using, except instead of exploding the blade has been enchanted to disintegrate the heart as soon as it makes contact with it." he explained with a smile.

Erica gave a small nod and then the two ran off to go help their friends.

* * *

The monsters were all just about destroyed, but the small group was starting to run low on bullets.

"Damn it! I'm out of bullets!" cursed Jesse.

"Yeah! Me too!" agreed Rory, pulling the trigger on his gun for it to only make a clicking sound.

"Guys! This isn't good! There's still too many for us to handle and they already took out some of our guards!" replied Stella in concern, as she fired her gun, killing another monster.

"I don't care! We can still take them!" snapped Ethan. Everyone took second to look at the seer in shock and concern at his words. It was like he didn't even care if they died here or not.

"Ethan! You don't mean that!" exclaimed Rory to his friend. "If we pull back now, then we can quickly evacuate the others from the warehouse and find somewhere else to go!" suggested Rory.

"No! I'm tired of running! It's time that we take a stand and fight! It doesn't matter were we run to, Stern will always find us and send us running again. It'll only be a matter of time before he'll finally catch up to us and kill us all! I'd rather go down fighting rather than being a coward and running away!" he answered harshly/sternly.

Nobody said a thing because in a way they knew that he was right, but also it did no good to die here, leaving all those poor people back in the warehouse denfenseless. But they knew that no matter what they would say, Ethan wouldn't listen to them. He was still grieving from what had happened 3 months ago, he had lost so much back then and it had left him empty inside.

Just then half of the monsters combusted into flames, leaving nothing but smoking ashes behind. The other half, they saw a blurry blonde headed streak zoom around between the monsters, quickly stabbing each one in the chest with what looked like a dagger. After they were stabbed, the monsters would fall down to the ground, dead.

Once all the monsters were gone, Jesse, Rory, Stella, and Ethan couldn't believe who they saw walking down the street towards them. It was Benny and the blonde streak then sped next to him, to reveal that it was Erica. The four of them then ran up to them with smiles on their faces, happy to see their beloved spell master again.

"B-Benny?" asked Ethan, stunned.

Benny just nodded his head. "The one and only!" he smiled.

Ethan had tears in his eyes, seeing his best friend alive and well. He couldn't help himself and lunged towards his best friend, hugging him and crying.

"Everyone kept trying to convice me that you were gone, but I refused to believe it! After we didn't find a body I just had this strange feeling like you were still out there somewhere! Alive!" he sniffled.

"I don't get it? How are you alive? I thought that spell killed you?" questioned Jesse, awe strucked.

"I'll explain once we get inside. Come on." answered Benny, leading the way back inside with Erica holding his hand. Everyone followed them, with smiles on their faces. This was just the thing that they all needed to help boost their morale some.

* * *

Once the adults and Jane saw that Benny was alive, they were all thrilled. Especially Evelyn, who after giving him a harsh and stern scolding she then immediately soften up and started to cry, while hugging him. Benny was glad to hear her voice again, even it was a scolding he was still happy to hear it.

After everyone calmed down from the high of seeing Benny alive, they all entered the small room and sat down, awaiting for his explanation.

"Alright, B! Spill! Just how is it that you're alive? I thought that doing the termination spell was like a...suicide spell or something? How did you survive?" asked Rory getting right to the point. "You're not a ghost, are you?" he then gasped.

Benny chuckled at hearing Rory's enthusiasm again. "No, Rory! I'm not a ghost! I'm a hundred percent alive and breathing! But you're right though! The spell was suppose to of kill me, but I guess I got extremely lucky and instead of it taking my life it took something else."paused Benny, sounding sad at the end. He then slowly removed his sunglasses, opening his eyes.

Gasps could be heard throughout the small room. Benny's eyes were a greyish white color, different from what it looks like when Ethan has his visions. The beautiful green eyes that he once had, no longer had any color to them. He was completely blind.

"My eye sight." he said, sadly.

Erica was now in tears. She couldn't believe that he would no longer get to her face ever again and she'll never get to see those beautiful green orbs of his ever again either. "Oh, Benny!" she cried, hugging him. "I'm so sorry."

Benny shook his head. "It's not your fault, Erica. It's a price I'm willing to pay to knowing you all are safe. And at least I'm still alive and not dead like how the spell usually goes." he said softly, stroking her hair, trying to comfort her.

She leaned back and gave a nod before wipping a tear from her eye.

"But I don't get it? Out there earlier, you seemed to be fighting as if you still had your eye sight?" questioned Rory from the blue.

"Well, that's part of the reason why I was gone for so long. Since it didn't kill me, it did take a lot out me and I needed to recover after performing the spell. It also took some time for me to adjust to all my other senses being heighten as a result. By combining my newly heighten senses with my magic I'm able to create a somewhat mental image in my mind of my surroundings. I can see outlines of peoples and can tell their mood by sensing their auras. Of course the image isn't all that clear at times on some things and I still tend to need a little help sometimes, but it's clear enough for me to help get around on my own." he answered, slightly proud of himself.

Mrs. Weir was also proud of her grandson for being able to find a way to quickly adapt to his new situtation. He was starting to become a fine spell master now. She could sense that he with more practice, and maybe a bit more focus, he would go on to do great things with his magic.

Then Benny frowned once he realized something different. "Ethan? Why is it that I sense that your aura has changed so...drastically? I know that before when I could still see, that I wasn't that great at sensing auras and magical energies, but I still had some idea of what your aura was like. It used to be more happier and...more brighter. Now it's more...bitter and a bit more darker than before. What happened?" he asked, then he looked around the room. "And where's Sarah? I don't sense her anywhere?"

Ethan's eyes began to water at the memory of what happen to Sarah. He couldn't bring himself to tell Benny that she was dead. Seeing this, Mrs. Morgan moved to her son and hugged him as he softly cried into her. She petted his head comfortingly, while holding him close. She then looked up at Benny sullenly.

"Benny." she began, quietly. "Sarah's dead."

"What?!" he shouted in shock. "B-but how?" he asked, stuttering in disbelief.

"It happened 3 months ago, during our first attempt to look for surviors." said Jane, sadly.

"Ok...but Sarah was fine then, wasn't she?"

Jane shook her head. "No. It might of seemed liked it, but she was keeping a secret from us, that she had gotten scratched by one of the monsters during that ambush on them."

"It was only after the explosion when we thought that you had died, did we only find out about it. And by then it was already too late to do anything to help her." finished Mrs. Morgan.

Benny was at a loss for words at his best friend's devastating loss. He knew how much Sarah had meant to him. He didn't know what he would do if it was Erica that had died instead of Sarah. Well, he had some idea about that. He'd probably react the same way that Ethan had been reacting. No wonder his aura seemed more depressing and darker than it's usual cheery and upbeat one.

He got up and walked over towards his sobbing friend and placed a hand on his shoulder. Ethan looked up at him with slightly watery eyes.

"I am so sorry, Ethan. I should of been there for you." apologized Benny.

Ethan gave a small smile and shook his head. "No. Don't be. It wasn't your fault. We all thought that you were dead and plus, you needed time to recover from that spell. There was no way for you too have been able to have the strength to come back sooner, after what I've heard from doing that spell. And besides. You're here now and I have my best friend back. Alive and well." he replied. "Well...sort of well." he added with a small chuckle. Benny smiled back at hearing that all familiar laugh of his and saw that his aura had grown a slightly brighter color.

Everyone smiled too, at seeing the heartwarming interactionbetween the two friends. Maybe by having his best friend back, would change Ethan back to the person that he once was again. Maybe not completely at first because they all knew that it would take some time before he would ever be a hundred percent himself again, but still. It was nice to see him smiling and happy again.

"It really is great to have you back, you know." said Ethan smiling.

"Yeah! I know." replied Benny back, then all the teens moved in for a group hug. It felt great have this feeling again, but then he remembered that he had something very important to tell them.

"Guys. There's something else that I need to tell you all that just might change the direction of this war in our favor."

"What?" asked Jesse, with a raised brow.

"Well. Just like how you guys thought I was dead, so did Stern. After recovering and everything, I decided to take advantage of it. I used a locator spell to help me find were Stern is hiding out at and then I snuck inside to snoop around and try to find anything that looked like we could use against him." he started to explain.

"That was a very dangerous and stupid thing to do, Benny! What if you got caught?! He would of then surely of killed you!" scolded/gasped Erica, furiously and worryingly.

"Don't worry Erica! He didn't. I cloaked my magic and scent, so he couldn't detect me and so the monsters lurking around couldn't smell me, either. And thanks to my sharpen senses, it made it super easy for me to be able to detect when either Stern or a monster was around, so I could avoid them." he said, reassuringly to her.

"Well...did you find anything?" asked Jesse, curiously and anxiously.

Benny nodded his head and then reached into his bag that he's been carring and pulled out a small clear crystal ball. Everyone's mouths dropped open.

"Benny? Is that what I think it is?" asked Rory, stunned.

"Yep! The Lucifractor!" he answered.

"But...it's powerless now. How is it suppose to help us?" asked Jane.

"Actually, it's not entirely powerless." he said. Then it started glow a very faint purple. "See! It still has some power left in it. I guess Stern didn't absorb it all like he thought he did. I was only able to sense that small trace of power in it thanks to my new senses. I figured that we could use it against him." explained Benny.

"But how?" asked Stella.

"Oh! I get it, B! The Lucifractor was made to absorb dark energy and since Stern absorbed all the dark energy that it had stored over the years and is using it to control the monsters, we could use it to reabsorb all that dark energy back into it! Leaving him as powerful as he was before he asborbed it! And thus breaking his control over those monsters!" explained Ethan, cutting in when he realized what Benny was getting at. "You're a genius!"

Benny blushed a little. "Well. I do try." he boasted, flashing a hue grin. Erica rolled her eyes at him and gave him a playful nudge.

Everyone was ecstatic about the plan. They finally had a solid plan that just might work at stopping Stern's evil tyranny.

"But...I don't get it? Right after the explosion, when he declared war on us. He was holding up the Lucifractor and it was glowing even more brightly then than it is now? Why is that?" asked Rory, from nowhere.

After some thought, Evelyn had a hypothesis about that.

"My guess is that maybe he couldn't absorb it all completely at once on his first try. So after he dispersed more of it's engery into the monsters, it had allowed him to finish absorbing the rest of it later on." comment Mrs. Weir.

Everyone nodded in agreement. "So, what are we waiting for?! Let's go kick this plan into high gear! Shall we?" suggested Rory, enthusiastically. Stella giggled at Rory and gave a peck on the cheek, which caused the vampire to blush.

After gearing up, Benny lead the way to were Stern was hiding at. They were all had a determined look in their eyes. They were going to finish this and win this war!

"We're coming for you Stern!" shouted Rory, as they left the building.

* * *

Back at Stern's hide out, which was at City Hall, he was watching the gangs every move on a special enchanted monitor. He saw when Benny appeared and rescued them from his latest attempt to kill them, but he couldn't see inside the building once they went in. When they left, he followed their movements and saw that they were headed for City Hall.

"So. Mr. Weir is alive after all. Oh, well! It doesn't matter. They still can't hope to defeat me! But if they want to come here, straight to their deaths, then so be it. At least this time I can make sure that they are finally dead. I'm gonna enjoy this." he sneered with an evil grin. Then he broke out into an evil laugh, as he summoned more of his monsters.

* * *

Erica, Rory, Benny, Stella, Jesse, and Ethan finally made it to City Hall, while the adults and Jane stayed behind to defend the warehouse. They were surprised to see that there weren't any monster around the place, guarding it.

"That's strange? Why aren't there any guards outsides, protecting the place?" wondered Ethan.

"I don't know..." trailed Jesse suspiciously.

"You don't think he knew that we were coming, do you?" asked Rory, which just earned him baffled looks and clueless shrugs.

"ALRIGHT STERN! COME ON OUT AND FACE US! IT'S TIME THAT WE FINISH THIS FOR GOOD!" yelled Benny, demandingly at the building.

There was nothing but silence at first, but then the double doors to the enterance had started to slowly creak open and out came Stern with a smug smile on his face.

"Greetings! And welcome! I'm so very pleased that you all could make it here, today!" he greeted pleasantly to them.

"Cut the crap, Stern!" barked Benny.

Stern looked over at him and smiled. "Well. Well. Well. Look who survived doing the termination spell after all! You're quite the resilient little spell master, aren't you?" quiped Stern. Then he noticed Benny's eyes and then grinned. "But it seems like you didn't come out of it completely unscathed, now did you?" he smirked.

"Leave him alone, Stern!" shouted Erica, defensively with her fangs bared and ready to fight.

Stern just laughed at her. "Very well then! Shall we get on with our little...battle, to see who wins this war once and for all?" he mused.

"So, what! You're going to take us on all by yourself then? What about your little pets?" said Jesse, smirking.

"Oh! You mean...these pets?" replied Stern, mockingly. He snapped his fingers and then an army of monsters appeared out from inside the building and around it, all of them circling the gang of six. Then he laughed.

"Guys. I don't think we can take on that many with just the six of us." gulped Rory, nervously.

"Don't worry Rory. If we just stick to the plan, then everything should work out just fine." reassured Stella, confidently. Rory gave her slight nod, before returning his attention back at the matter at hand, determinedly and ready to fight.

"It's time we finish this Stern! You've cause enough heartache and destruction already!" shouted Benny defiantly.

"I agree, Mr. Weir. Let us finish this, here and now!" stated Stern, determinedly. Stern then pointed in their direction as he gave the order to attack. "GO! MY MONSTERS! GO AND FINISH THESE FOOLISH TEENAGERS AND THEIR SILLY REBELLION ONCE AND FOR ALL! ATTACK!" he command/yelled.

All of the monsters charged forward at the small group of friends, all at once. Ready to sink their teeth and claws into their flesh and tear them limb from limb, just as their master had commanded them to do. Stern didn't join in on the fight, just quite yet. Instead he just stood there and watched as the battle began, as he laughed.

* * *

The gang had decided it would be best to face the monsters if they were paired up. So that way they can watch each others backs more easier. Erica had paired up with Benny and Rory had paired up with Stella, while Jesse paired up with Ethan.

Erica and Benny were kicking monster butt left and right with their awesome skills and teamwork. Erica had to look out for Benny even more now than ever with his blindness. She wasn't going to lose the love of her life again. She was a little surprised at just how much better Benny had gotten at his spell casting, especially with being blind.

Benny would change back and forth between freezing the monster in place, to make it easier for Erica to use her enchanted dagger on them, and shooting them with fireballs. Together the two had managed to take out a good number on them.

"Hey, Erica?" asked Benny, as he panted.

"Yeah, Benny?" answered Erica back, after pulling the dagger out of a monster's chest.

"Just in case we don't make it out of this alive...and since I didn't get the chance to ask you this before my 'death' and all..." he started, as he hit another monster with a fireball, killing it in a blaze of fire.

Erica knew where Benny was heading with this and she desperately waited for this moment. She felt butterflies well up inside her stomach at the thought of what he was about say next.

"But...I love you Erica Jones! Alway has and always will! Until the day I die!" he confessed/blurted out quickly.

Erica flinched a bit at his choice of words at the end of his confession, but soon enough a smile spread across her face, as she turned to look at him lovingly. Right after she ripped out the monster that she was fighting heart with her bare hand because the other hand had the dagger in it, which was currently jammed in another monster's heart. Both monsters fell to the ground, dead, at the same time.

"I love you, too!" she smiled, fondly at him.

Even though he couldn't see her smile, he could still feel it's warm directed towards him. He smiled back too, after killing three monsters with a rapid fire of spells. He then gulped at what he was about to ask her next.

"T-then...w-will you...b-be...my...g-girlfriend?" he stuttered slightly and nervously, even though he already knew how she felt, he was still nervous to ask the question.

Erica giggled at his nervousness and then said, "Yes!"

If he wasn't busy right now fighting for his life, he would of done a happy dance or cartwheels or something to show his excitement at hearing her answer. But instead, he settled for a quick kiss on the lips, as Erica came up to him and kissed him.

* * *

Rory and Stella where doing pretty alright themselves too. Seeing Stella act like a total bad ass, killing monster left and right, made Rory awe strucked at seeing how beautiful she looked doing it. While he wasn't paying any attention to his surroundings, a monster was about to attack him, but Stella kicked the monster in the stomach and then shot it in the heart with her gun, giving a smile of victory as her red hair blowed in the wind.

"Wow! Has anybody ever told you that you look REALLY hot while kicking monster butt?!" asked Rory in amazement.

"Nope! But I appreciate the compliment, though babe." she said giggling, and then she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm SO in love with you right now!" said Rory dreamingly, then he punched a monster in the face as it came at him, absentmindly.

"And I love you too, Rory, but right now is not the best time to be swooning right now. We have a job to do." said Stella. She then hit a monster in the head with the back of her gun, knocking it out and then shooting it. "Take that you bastard!" she added, yelling at the dead monster.

"Right!" agreed Rory, snapping out of his daze. "That's my girl! Not taking names and kicking ass!" he praised her, which caused her to blush slightly.

* * *

It was surprising how much of a good team that Ethan and Jesse made fighting together, despite everything that's happened between the two in the past.

"Who would've thought that we would make such a great team, eh Morgan?" said Jesse, in fighting position with his back against Ethan's, ready for action.

"Yeah. Who would've thought." scoffed Ethan with a smirk, as he fired his gun.

"I bet Sarah would of been proud of us, fighting together instead of against each other." commented Jesse, shooting a monster. Then he frowned. "You know. I really miss her, sometimes." he added sadly.

"Yeah...Me too." replied Ethan, sadly as well. Then a small smile appeared on his face. "She's probably smiling down on us right now. Cheering us on and wishing that she could be hear to fight by our side, right now." he added, as he dodged a monster's attack.

"Well, then! What do ya say, Ethan? Let's not disappoint her and give it our all, together as a team!" said Jesse, holding out his free hand.

Ethan took his hand and gave it a firm shake, and smiled. "Let's do it!"

* * *

Eventually, the number of monsters had started to dwindle, but the gang was also running out of steam themselves. Furious, Stern fired a bolt of purple lightening in their direction, which knocked everyone off their feet. As they all got up, slowly and groaning they could hear Stern approaching them. Then he started a slow clap as the rest of the monsters backed off.

"Well done, children! Very well done indeed!" he grinned, mocking them. "I'm very impressed that you all managed to survive as long as you did, against my army." he praised. "But I'm afraid the fun stops here! It's time for you all to either bow down to me or die!" said Stern, getting serious now.

"We'll never bow down to you!" yelled Ethan.

An evil smirk then appeared on his face. "Then die!" he said, raising his hand at them, about ready to fire another lightening bolt at them, but this time he wasn't going to miss on purpose.

Benny looked at Ethan, who gave him a quick nod and Benny did the same. "I don't think so!" shouted Benny, pulling out the Lucifractor.

At first Stern was stunned by just how it was that he managed to get his hands on it, but then he started to cackle.

"Am I suppose to be afraid of that?" he laughed. "Why...that thing is completely powerless now! Now that I have drained it of all it's power! Stupid teenagers!" he sneered, continuing to laugh at them.

Benny grinned at Stern's foolishness. "Oh! It's not completely powerless, Stern." stated Benny knowingly, as he then made it glow. Stern immediately stopped laughing and his eyes grew wide with worry. "You see, thanks to my blindness, which gave my magical senses a little boost, I can sense that the Lucifractior still has a small amount of power left in it. Enough to drain you of yours!" explained Benny, proudly and confidently.

"It can't be..." murmered Stern, in utter disbelief.

"Now! It's time to return the power that you stole from it and ending your little war!" declared Benny determinedly.

He then shot out a purple beam of light from the little orb, hitting Stern. The power that once belonged to the Lucifractor was now being sucked back into it.

"AAAAHHHH!" cried out Stern in pain from it draining his power.

Once all his power was zapped from him, Stern hunched over, panting heavily and had a hand placed over his chest. He regained his composure once he managed to catch his breath. Furious, he held out his hands towards them, but nothing happened. Confused, he tried to blast them again, but again nothing happened.

"W-what's going on here? Why isn't my magic working?" he said, stunned and shocked. He had a look of confusion on his face and fear in his eyes.

Stella, Rory, Jesse, Erica, Benny, and Ethan all looked at each other, baffled by this strange phenomena as well. After some thought, Ethan had a plausible answer.

"I guess when he absorbed the Lucifractor's power, it must of somehow mixed and binded itself to Stern's magic." responded Ethan, in thought.

"So, when we reabsorbed all that dark enegry back into it, it must of also absorbed Stern's magic with it!" finished Erica in realization at what happened.

All of a sudden, growling could be heard. When the gang looked back over, they all had looks of shock and worry on their faces, as the monster had started to circle around Stern and close in on him. They all looked really mad and really hungry.

"W-what are you doing?! No! Stay back! I am your master! Listen to me and obey!" he pleaded in fear. "NO! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! NOOOOO!" screamed Stern, as the monsters that were once under his control, were had now turned against him and had started to attack him.

The gang all flinched at hearing the ear piercing cry of Stern, as the monsters tore into him, eating him alive and killing him. They were all horrified by the gruesome act.

"Well. I'm glad that it's finally all over with." sighed Stella in relief. Everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

"Uh...guys?" piped Rory, slightly worringly.

"Yeah, Rory? What's up?" answered Ethan.

"Somehow I don't think that it's quite over, just yet." replied Rory, slowly.

They all turned around to see that some of the monsters were now looking at them the same way they were looking at Stern, a moment ago.

"It is me...or do they still look really ravenous, right now?" asked Ethan fearfully.

They all nodded in response, except for Benny because there's no aura for hunger, but he did see a lot of red coming off them.

"Uh...not all of us can SEE how they look right now! All I'm getting from is a bunch of angry red!" stressed Benny, in an obvious but slightly annoyed tone.

"R-ight!" said Jesse, drawing the word out. "Well, let's just say that they're looking at us as their next snack." said Jesse slightly worried.

Benny made an 'oh' expression when he got what he meant. "Then why are standing around here for? Let's get out of here before they do!" he said urgently and scared for his life.

No one argued with that logic and they quickly got out of there, with the vampires each grabbing a human and speeding out of there quickly, to safety and to hopefully figure out why the monsters are still on a rampage but this even more worser than before.

* * *

**A/N: And there's chapter 8, folks!**

**A lot has happened in this chapter, huh? I bet no one expected for Benny to actually be alive, huh? Lol! Sorry about that, but we just HAD to do it! Lol!**

**I hate to be the bearer of bad news and all, but I'm afraid that this little collaboration between me and TiredOfBeingNice is coming to close real soon. There's only about two more chapters left. Sorry! But that's how it goes, folks! Lol!**

**So, please review and let us know your thoughts about the chapter. Until then, I'll be seeing you in chapter 10, the final chapter. I now pass the torch to TiredOfBeingNice! See ya, later! ;)**

**MBAV fan66**


	9. The Final Deed

**A/N- Wassup? It be TOBN here with the long awaited chapter for Dark Days: A World In Ruins!**

**Finally, huh? I seriously should've written this ages ago, but with finishing stories, thinking of plot ideas for What If [Which I will soon be doing after I complete this chapter and Tropical Friends]**

**And to be completely honest, I have totally slacked off this story because I have gotten a terrible writer's block with this chapter. I have thought of every scenario that I could possibly use**, **but I think I finally found a better way to do so. I did it guys, in other words. I did it :)**

**Sadly, this is my last chapter on this story [aside from the small Author's note I get on Chapter 10], I want to say that I couldn't have been more happier with this story. It turned out so amazingly well. Not only was this my first collaboration story, but it was my first collaboration [wink] with my dearest fanfic buddy, who did an extraordinary job. Send my love to you, fanfic buddy! And thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed, and favorited this story, or to the people who just read it for the fun of it. It is greatly appreciated, and I am so happy to say that this was probably my favorite story I worked on as of today. So thanks for making it so special :')**

**With that, I present Chapter 9. My final chapter. This is over dramatic now, so I am going to say thanks for believing in us, and drop a review. And never forget to do the one thing I always ask of you...**

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: MBAV fan66 and TiredOfBeingNice (That is me! *Fireworks and lights*)

Chapter 9: The Final Deed

* * *

Erica, Jesse, Ethan, Rory, Stella and Benny stood before the monsters creating havoc to their city, their eyes widened in shock as Ethan gulped rather nervously. Stella found a little safe heaven in a building. They rushed over, hiding behind Rory shifted uncomfortably as he looked at the gang with fearful eyes.

"This...this was so not part of the plan." Rory said with a tremble of fear in his voice. Benny nodded as he walked forward before stumbling over a steel rod in the building. He yelped as Erica caught him with a smile. Benny smiled as he pointed his head towards the blonde vampire.

"Thanks. Non-biotic things don't have the best auras, if you know what I mean." He said meekly. But Erica just frowned as Benny kinda saw her aura damper. He frowned. "What is the matter? Why did you turn sad?" Erica shook her head as she helped the blind spellmaster up to get straight on his feet. She sighed.

"It's just...it's just that it is going to take me a while to get used to the fact that you are blind. I love you Benny. I can't handle it to see you trying to...see, if you know what I mean. I guess what I am trying to say is that I...I care for you Benny. I really do. I just can't handle this anymore. I want you to be okay again." She said, tears beading her eyes. Benny wanted to cry as he hugged Erica tightly.

"I love you too, Erica. I am okay. I may not be the same physically, but I am the same on the inside. I really am. Please...please trust me. Don't worry about me, okay? Let's just get this going please. I will be fine." He reassured his girlfriend, smiling a bit. He watched as Erica's sad, blue aura turned to a soft pink one, one that sparkled in love. She kissed him.

"Thank you Benny. That means a lot." She said with a smile, making Benny blush.

They were doing just fine until Ethan coughed awkwardly, breaking the couple apart for a bit. Ethan looked down bluntly.

"Um, I hate to break your 'happy hour', but we still need to do something with all these monsters. If we don't do something, they will totally wipe out our city in seconds, and us. We need a plan, right now." Ethan said seriously, making everyone nod. Jesse frowned. "But how are we going to destroy all these monsters? Yeah, we have the weapons and the ammo to do so, but we don't even know how many monsters are still out there in Whitechapel." He explained, making everyone think for a minute. Then, Stella had an idea.

"Wait, Benny sucked the Lucifractor's power, along with Stern's magic, right?" She asked. Everyone mumbled some response as they nodded. Rory seemed to understand where Stella was going as he grinned.

"Well, Benny used the termination spell to destroy that one monster. What if we use the Lucifractor's power, along with Stern's magic, and make some sort of termination spell with Stern's magic? We can use the termination spell that we'll broadcast, and it could destroy them all, then we can use the remaining power in the Lucifractor and destroy the monster's energy, in an explosion. It could be like when the Lucifractor exploded with Stern, but this time, for real. It'll destroy the Lucifractor once and for all." Stella smiled as she nodded, giving Rory a high five. "We have the same mind, babe." She giggled. Rory blushed as Ethan frowned.

"That is a good idea, but how could we use the termination spell with Stern's magic when Stern is not even present? The only spellmaster who survived it was Benny, and he barely did it. How could we do it again?" Benny answered this one.

"Well, as I said before, the termination spell turns the spell caster's magic into a huge and powerful blast. But if there is two sources of magic inside one spellmaster, the termination spell could take one source of magic in the spellmaster and turn it into the powerful blast that could wipe out the monsters. I wouldn't lose all my magic - since I am going to have a spare source of magic - but it might hurt a bit. But I will be guaranteed my life stays in tact. I just need to absorb Stern's magic." Jesse looked at Benny in worry.

"Wait, but what if the blast takes your magic instead of Stern's? Stern was a dark magic user, and he obviously was evil. Would that affect you...at all in a physical way? Would it make you evil?" He asked. Benny shook his head. "Not unless I fight off the urge to be evil. If I remind myself who's side I am on, I will be okay. Plus, it's a 50/50 chance that I would get Stern's magic instead of mine. Nevertheless, it'll be worth it." He said with a brave smile. Erica frowned.

"Benny, you are already blind, and you are going to go ahead and add more to that?" Benny looked at Erica in that pleading way through his solid black glasses, and it made Erica break down and sigh. "If we are going to do this, we are going to have to run the plan with Evelyn and the others. They'll know what to do." Erica said bravely. Ethan nodded as Jesse smiled.

"There are three vamps, and three mortals. We'll each take a mortal, and we'll speed off to the warehouse before the monsters catch us. Then we can talk with the rest of the gang." He said. Before Ethan could even say anything, Rory took Stella in his arms and sped off in a flash. Jesse opened his mouth to say something, but Erica shook her head with a smirk and carried Benny bridal style and flashed away fast.

Jesse and Ethan were left in the building, crossing their arms as they stood back to back with a huff on their face.

"I ain't carrying you, Morgan"

"I ain't letting you" He replied snarkily.

Then, they heard a roar outside, and it sounded like a hungry monster. Jesse and Ethan exchanged fearful glances as Ethan hopped into Jesse's arms and looked at his eyes with a stern and embarrassed look.

"You better speed away so fast, that we could match the speed of light. Because I swear to god, if you don't, we are going to get eaten alive." Ethan threatened. Jesse nodded. "We never speak of this again." He said back. Ethan nodded. "Deal."

And with a huff, Jesse sped off with Ethan in his arms, just before a monster could totally claw its way through the glass of the broken building, roaring as its eyes were thirsty for blood and human life, a hunger that lusted in its mind as it very well could eat anything that went in its way.

* * *

When they reached the warehouse, Evelyn placed a magical alarm that would alert them when a monster is a kilometer away or so, so they could be ready, just in case another monster attack would occur when they were planning.

Stella had explained the plan, and although Evelyn didn't want the plan to go on, not wanting her grandson to have the chance of turning to dark magic. But Benny reassured her that he would be okay, and that he would never turn to the evil side. Evelyn eventually agreed, knowing it was the only shot they had. Jane frowned when she heard the plan.

"Okay, that is a good plan. But the problem is where are we going to channel the Lucifractor and broadcast its power through the city?" Rory shrugged. "Well, when Stern wanted to broadcast the Lucifractor's power, he went to the Caller. So do you think we can go there?" Jesse shrugged. "I know the Vampire Council made the Caller so well secured, that the blast won't really break it down. I guess we can use the Caller as a...satellite, of the magic coursing through the city." Mrs. Jones piped up.

"I know you guys had to run out before the Lucifractor..um..exploded. But how would you be able to survive the blast again?" She asked. Ethan answered this one.

"Well, we could always just hide in the same place we hid in when we ran out of the building and Benny punched the glass with his hand." He suggested, making Benny look back to his softly scarred hand. Mr. Keaner nodded. "That works." He agreed. Mrs. Morgan frowned.

"Wait, how about us? We don't know where that is. We need to be there before you guys." She pointed out. Everyone stayed quiet before Erica finally came up with an idea. She counted all the people. There was six of the gang, then seven of the adults and Jane. She had an idea.

"Okay, there is six of us; Benny, Ethan, Jesse, Rory, Stella and I. We could split up. We still have those headsets, no?" The gang nodded as they felt the headsets still in tact. Erica smiled as she looked at everyone.

"We could get three people to lead everyone to that gap in the building, then we could have three more people broadcast the Lucifractor's power." She said with a satisfied nod. After some thinking, Benny finally thought of some groups.

"Well, I have to be one of those people who goes to the Caller. I am doing the spell, nevertheless. I also need a vampire to carry me back out, because I obviously can't run." Erica volunteered to do so, and then Ethan stood up.

"I can help you with the spell. Like, assist you with whatever you need; books, help with placing the Lucifractor properly, etc. Then I will just run after you guys." Erica nodded. "Then it's settled. Rory, Stella and Jesse are going to go back to the gap in the building with everyone, defending the group from any monsters, then Ethan, Benny and I will go activate the Lucifractor." Evelyn suddenly stopped them.

"Wait." She said urgently, catching everyone's attention. "Benny needs to absorb Stern's magic now, or else he won't have time when he gets there. We need to be quick and fast. So Benny, I am going to teach you the spell, then you have to absorb Stern's dark magic." Benny nodded, about to do something before Evelyn stopped her. "Benny, you need to listen to me." She said seriously. Benny nodded as she looked at him earnestly.

"Having two magic sources in your body is extremely draining. It'll take most of your energy. You will be extremely weak, so you need to be careful. And when you use the termination spell and it takes either your magic, or Stern's, it'll be like ripping out your heart. It'll be painful. So I need you to take it easy, okay?" She said. Benny nodded. "I promise, Grandma." He said with a brave smile, making Evelyn kiss his forehead as she smiled.

"So good luck, my Benny." She said with tears down her eyes, hugging him tightly as Benny nodded, hugging her too.

He felt her aura perk up, seeing a soft pink. Love.

Evelyn taught Benny the spell as the gang loaded up on ammo and weapons. They prepared some enchanted guns, thanks to Jane's magic, and they made sure they were fully ready for a battle. They had those enchanted daggers Erica and Benny used when they fought the monsters with Stern, and enchanted guns, blades, even grenades. Finally, they were ready, and Benny performed the spell. Evelyn kept lecturing him.

"Make sure you say dark magic, so you don't absorb the Lucifractor's magic. And I swear, Benjamin Weir, do not be tempted by the dark magic inside that orb. If you do, I'll spank you so hard with lightening." She said sternly. Benny nodded as he held the Lucifractor in his hand and took a deep breath and said the spell.

"Mihi liceret eius absorbet tenebris magicae in hunc terrarum orbem" ("Allow me to absorb the dark magic in this orb" - Courtesy of Google Translate)

Benny felt something bounce right into him, a small gasp as he saw a black mist drift into his mind. He jerked around a bit as his eyesight suddenly started flashing many colors. He saw jumbled auras and feelings, not being able to focus on one as he saw them run past him.

He then felt extremely weak, everything dampening to a stop. He inhaled deeply as he stumbled forward, dropping the Lucifractor on the ground as he collapsed. He took a sharp intake of breath as Erica ran up to his body. She shook him a bit, and Benny emitted a groan from his mouth.

"That...that really sucked." He said tiredly, weakly stumbling to his feet as he felt Ethan wrap his hand around his arm, holding him up. Benny could see a faint outline of his friend, but it had seemed that absorbing the magic allowed Benny to suddenly become a bit more blind. He ignored it though as he smiled.

"Let's do this." He said with a smile, weakly walking out with the help of Erica and Ethan, then the adults, Jane, Stella, Rory and Jesse walked out of the warehouse, itching for a fight as they made their way through the broken city.

It was time to perform the final deed.

* * *

Ethan, Erica and Benny made their way through the Council building and into the Caller. They had just received word from Rory's group that they arrived safely to the gap in the building, despite the fact encountering one monster. But they were able to kill it, and they were safe. They were currently digging down to allow some more space for everyone.

Now, it was just up to Benny and his group to pull it all together.

They walked into the slightly wrecked room and found a place to put the Lucifractor and still be able to spread its magic throughout Whitechapel. Benny smiled as he was led in front of the Lucifractor, standing exactly where Stern once stood. He felt the Lucifractor, placed his hand on the purple marble and took a breath.

"Okay...okay this is happening." Ethan patted his back and smiled.

"Go get 'em." Ethan said. Benny smiled as he felt Ethan's shoulder and patted it with a smile. "As with you, young padawan." He said bravely with a smile. Ethan backed away as Benny could see the outline of Erica, who kissed his cheek.

"Don't scream too loud." She said with a soft smile. Benny could sense a small aura of worry, but it was replaced with a sense of hope from the blonde vampire, which made him spark up with hope. He smiled.

"I'll try." He responded, getting a nod from Erica as she stood with Ethan, resting her head on his shoulder worryingly. Ethan blushed a bit, kinda being reminded of when Sarah did this to him, but he accepted it as an act of friendship as he smiled.

Benny stood before the Lucifractor, taking a breath as he recited the termination spell once more.

Ethan felt the whole place rumble as Benny also said the spell that would allow the Lucifractor's energy to course through Whitechapel, along with the spell, then make it explode for good. Benny felt as his mortal soul was being ripped from his body as he screamed a blood curling screech, totally doubling over in complete pain. He fell to the ground, unconscious as rocks started to crumple around them once more. Erica screamed as she ran to Benny's body, saving him from a falling rock as she carried him, her and Ethan then started to run out.

They sped through the halls as Ethan looked at Erica.

"Run Erica! I'm slowing you down! Go to the building; I'll catch up!" He yelled. Erica hesitated, but seeing Benny's unconscious body in her arms and Ethan's scared eyes made her believe the Seer, nodding as she sped off with her vampire speed and allowing herself and Benny to make it to the building with everyone. Evelyn frowned.

"Did he do it?" She asked. Erica nodded with tears down her eyes. Mrs. Morgan was crying too. "Where's Ethan?" She asked through tears. Erica shrugged. "He told me to save myself and Benny. He said he'll catch up.

They watched from the gap as the Council building collapsed, making Mrs. Morgan scream.

"ETHAN!" She yelled.

Suddenly, from the smoke, they saw Ethan run out in time and running as fast as he could. A wave of purple was starting to catch up to him as time ticked for the Seer. Everyone cheered him on, yelling for him in support. The support helped; Ethan mustered up enough energy to throw himself into the gap in the building, the gang making way for Ethan as he jumped in, and right before the gap closed in, Evelyn whispered the protection spell and a ripple of pink magic swirled through the gap.

The pink light dimmed as they were engulfed in an eerie darkness.

* * *

Ethan opened his eyes to darkness.

He looked around, but he couldn't stand. Fuck. His leg must be broken.

He moved his leg a bit before gasping in agony, a pain shooting through his body at rapid speed. People heard this, and they woke up. Erica woke up first, then Rory, then Stella, Jane, Evelyn, Mr and Mrs. Jones, Mr and Mrs Keaner, and Mrs Morgan.

...

Then finally Benny.

Benny stirred as he wanted to throw up. He moaned as Erica aided him. Evelyn placed her hand on Benny's forehead, before smiling.

"The Lucifractor took Stern's magic, probably since it was already kinda used to it. So there is no trace of black magic in Benny any longer. He's okay." Everyone cheered as Benny mumbled something, then moaned.

"Is it over?" He asked. "Can we get out? 'Cause..." Rory cut him off with a hiss and a snarl. "I get it. I'm squeezing your butt. I know. We're getting out soon, geez." He said, shaking his head disapprovingly. Benny shook his head. "No. 'Cause I wanna barf."

Everyone was grossed out as Ethan yelped. His mom calmed him down as he groaned. "I think I broke my leg." Erica's dad smiled through the darkness. "I can probably aid that. But for now, we need to get out." Benny smiled weakly. We...We still have that hole I made from punching the glass." He suggested. Everyone smiled as they crawled out, being greeted by the same destroyed scene. But this time, it was different.

There were no monsters.

"We need to contact someone, somehow. Maybe a security, or-" Ethan was about to continue [while Benny was barfing on the side], but was cut off by Evelyn, who shook her head. "There are no more monsters Benny. The reason no one was coming to Whitechapel was because the area was infested by monsters. But now that they are gone, I sent a telepathic message to one of the supernatural Earth priestesses in Ottawa, one that I met in a convention. She is sending help from the capital, and we-"

Now she was cut off with a buzz.

"We found them sir." A voice from up above said. Benny looked up, as with the whole gang, and saw an outline of people and...some sort of vehicle...

"Is that...a helicopter?" Benny said with joy. Rory nodded, everyone huddling close as they saw a helicopter lower a ladder above them, wind flowing through their hair as their dirty faces finally were able to smile.

They were saved.

"We won." Rory murmured.

* * *

**A/N- And that is that! What a chapter, huh? I am proud of it :)**

**Anyway, that was my last chapter. Thanks everyone for reading it. Now I throw it to my fanfic buddy for the last time and trust her to get a real good epilogue going on! I hope you anticipate that!**

**But I am glad I am done; this means this two, almost three month project ends before June. Thanks you all ;)**

**So drop a review, and thanks for reading!**

**This has been TOBN, signing off *takes a final bow***

**In Fangs, We Trust**


	10. Memorial

**A/N: Hey, guys! It's me! MBAV fan66! And I have the final chapter to Dark Days: A World In Ruins!**

**So, TiredOfBeingNice might of started this thing, but now I'm finishing it! Lol! I'm so sad that this is the last chapter to our little project together :( But it must be done.**

**This will be my final author's note for this story, because I'm graciously letting my Fanfic Buddy have the honors of writing the final author's note at the end of this chapter. So, be sure to read the end author's note to hear what TOBN has to say.**

**This has truly been a fun and amazing exprience for me and I am glad that it was with my Fanfic Buddy, TiredOfBeingNice. So, I would like to say thank you fanfic buddy for giving me this chance to experience my first ever collaboration story with you! Lol! We made a pretty good team, if I do say so myself! Lol!**

**This epilogue is gonna get me all misty eyed because of all of the love that you're gonna experience while reading it. So, no more sad stuff. Just tears of joy, remembrance, and celebration.**

**So, enough with the mushy stuff and let's get this epilogue started! Lol! Oh! And neither TiredOfBeingNice nor I own the song "One Sweet Day" by Mariah Carey and Boys II Men. That right belongs whoever was involved in making the song. And please bare with me on the song. I was trying to do it like TOBN does it in her stories. Lol!**

**So, I hope you like it and enjoy and don't forget to review! And a very BIG thank you to all of you who've stuck around to read our little collab together! Thank You!**

* * *

Dark Days: A World In Ruins

By: TiredOfBeingNice and MBAV fan66 (too emotional to speak at the moment)

Chapter 10: Memorial

* * *

One Year Later

It has been one whole year since that horrible day the Lucifractor exploded for the first time and Stern had declared World War III on Whitechapel and the world. One year since the tragic events of losing loved ones and seeing other innocent lives being lost. One year since his defeat and ridding the town of those vile and vicious monsters that were roaming around afterwards, along with the destruction of the Lucifractor.

And in that one year, a lot had changed.

Now the whole world knows that the things that go bump in the night aren't just fiction anymore, but are very much real. Some of the supernatural creatures were at first afraid that the humans would shun and hate them and treat them like garbage. And that it would lead to segregation and discrimination among the two sides, but luckily that wasn't the case. The two sides had come together and put aside their many differences for the greater good of both communities.

Both sides worked together peacefully, side by side, in rebuilding Whitechapel. Most of Whitechapel had already been rebuilt and repaired after the Lucifractor event took place, but there was still a lot of work to be done. People from all over came to help in the rebuilding efforts of the town. Some from other towns and some even from other countries, like the United States. It was a glorious thing to see. The events of the Lucifractor had truly changed everything, but for the better, now it seems.

Having his best friend back, actually really did help Ethan cope with losing Sarah and his dad, a little bit. He no longer was as quiet or bitter. He did have his moments when he would get all sad and depressed and break out into tears whenever he thought about her, but it was getting better now. And he realized that he wasn't the only one who was missing them as much, too. He had his mom and sister right there by his side with him and his friends too. He was glad to still have them all in his life. It had brought them all even closer together as a family. And he knew that deep down, that it wasn't good-bye forever for him and Sarah. Just...a really long 'see ya later' kind of good-bye. And he was ok with that.

Benny and Erica has really grown as a couple. Erica has been really great about Benny's blindness and has been helping him around a little. She was like...his seeing eye vampire, if you will. And since Benny's blindness was caused my magic, his grandmother, Evelyn had sworn to look for a way that might be able to reverse it and give him his sight back. But Benny was in no hurry. He kind of enjoyed Erica waiting on him hand and foot a little...until the vampire started to get really annoyed by it and threaten to remove every last ounce of his blood from his body if he didn't stop taking advantage of her. So, he quit...kind of.

Stella and Rory were glued at the hips, now. They went everywhere and did everything together. The two were inseparable. And since she was an orphan until she turned eighteen, the Keaner's where nice enough to take her in. They loved Stella like a daughter. They were so glad that their son had found true love in her. And once school started back up again, Stella had wanted to give going to public school a shot. Stella had asked Rory to turn her into a vampire so she can be with him forever. Rory agreed to do it, but only after they graduated. Stella was cool with the idea of having to wait. What's a few more years to enjoy being human while it lasted, right?

The Vampire Council, after they had returned, had even allowed Jesse back in town again, since he was part of the fight against Stern. So, far he's been on the straight and narrow about the rules. And he too, as hard as it's to believe, would get down in the dumps whenever he thought about Sarah, too. Even to go as far as to shed a tear or few. And he would never admit it though, but he sort of saw Ethan and his friends as friends, too. Of course he still couldn't help, but to torment Ethan at times, but it was all in good fun and sometimes they would even have a little bonding moment and would laugh about it together. Whenever nobody else was around that is.

* * *

So, here it is. On the first anniversary of that day. The whole town, supernaturals and humans alike, all gathered around in Whitechapel's square on a cloudy day to hold a commemorative memorial service to honor that day and all those who have lost their lives then.

Anastasia took her place up on stage, as many watchful eyes looked up at her. She cleared her throat as she began to give her speech.

"Citizens of Whitechapel! Supernatural and human alike! We all gather here today, to commemorate the one year anniversary of that fateful event that changed our lives forever." she began. "The day an evil power crazed wizard named Stern had used a supernatural weapon called the Lucifractor, to declare war on all who opposed him. But thanks to a very brave few souls, he had failed in his conquest to rule over us."

The crowed cheered in excitement and glee, at her speech. Anastasia gave the crowd a moment to cheer before continuing.

"But sadly we had also lost a few of those good souls in the war. And we shall never forget them and they will always live on in our hearts forever for the sacrifices that they have made for us to ensure that we live to see another day. Let's us have a moment of silence to honor their memory." spoke Anastasia, wholeheartedly.

Everyone stood there with their heads lowered in silence, as they remembered those who have fallen during the crisis. People like Sarah Fox, Mr. and Mrs. Fox, and Ross Morgan. All who have fought and died bravely in the line of duty.

After the moment of silence was over Anastasia spoke again. " Now then! On a more better note, I'm glad to present you all with this monument, which not only will never let us forget those dark and tragic times that happened during the war, but it will also remind us of the positive that had came out of it, as well. Of uniting two different worlds together and bring us closer as one. So, that we now all can live together in peace and harmony, side by side as equals. Humans and supernaturals as allies!" she praised with hope and glee in her voice.

The crowd of people roared in cheer and praise again, before quieting down once again.

"Now I know that it might take sometime to adjust for everybody around the world, but I do hope that Whitechapel will serve as a reminder and as a beacon of hope that no matter the difference in spieces, we are all the same at our core. Beings that have feelings and emotions just as everyone else in the world does. So, let's not let our differences drive us apart, but instead bring us together as one." concluded Anastasia smiling happily, as the crowd all cheered and whistled at her speech.

"Now! Without further ado! I present to you, Whitechapel's very own monument! The Lucifractor Monument!" declared Anastasia proudly, as she clapped and turned to face the covered monument as it was being unveiled to it's citizens.

There stood a very giant sized replica of the Lucifractor on a stone squared slab thing. On all four of the stone's sides, was a little bronze plaque that read 'In remembrance to all those who have lost their lives during the World War III of Whitechapel. May this monument serve as a reminder to all those who fought bravely and to the unification of the human world and supernatural world. From a time that seemed so dark, a light had emerged and shone it's light to the world. Giving us a new hope and enlightment for the future.'

The crowd roared with excitement and happiness at their new monument that stood in the center of town. Representing their new found hopes and dreams for the future.

Anastasia then quieted down the cheering crowd of people, as she had more to announce.

"Now, joining me here on stage, to sing us a song to pay remembrance and to honor those who have lost their lives, whether they just died as an innocent bystanders or from risking their very own lives so that we may see tomorrow, are some of those heroes who lead the fight against Stern and won!" announced Anastasia, clapping along with the crowd before walking off stage.

* * *

Erica then came out on stage, holding Benny's hand and leading up on stage. They both had headset microphones on their heads, as the music soon began to play and the crowd went silent.

Benny took Erica's hands in his and let out a calming breath, as he began. "Sorry. I never told you. All I, wanted to say." he sang softly, as he looked into Erica's eyes. "And now, it's too late to hold you. 'Cause you've flown away, so far away-ayyy." he sang shifting his pitch up and down like a pro at the end of the verse.

Erica smiled at Benny and then began her verse. "Never. Had I imagined," she sung beautifully, "Living without your smile." sung Erica evening out the tone. "Feeling, and knowing you hear me. It keeps me alive!" she sang, raising her volume. "Alive!" she repeated hitting that high note perfectly.

They both then looked out towards the crowd as they continued to sing, this time in sync with on another, as they sung the chorus part.

"And! I know you're shining down on me from heaven! Like, so many friends we've lost along the way! And I know eventually we'll be together!" they both sang matching each others pitch. They faced each other again, smiling while continuing to hold hands.

"Together!" sang Erica proudly.

"One sweet day!" followed Benny happily. "Eventually I'll see you in heaven..." sung Erica softly in a slight whisper.

Then Benny felt someone take his other hand, which he could sense that it must of been Ethan. He looked over at his best friend and gave him a heartfelt smile, which Ethan returned. Then Ethan began the next verse.

"Darling, I never showed you." sang Ethan wonderfully into is headset. "I never showed you." repeated Benny in a quiet tone, smiling before Ethan continued. "Assumed you'd always be there."

"I thought you'd always be there." echoed Benny's voice into the mic.

"I, I took your presence for granted," sang Ethan's voice wavering just a little, as he wiped a tear from his eye with his free hand and smiled, "But I always cared." he said lifting his voice up some, as Erica repeated the last part with emotion. "But I always cared."

"And I miss the love we shared!" sang Ethan with all his heart, truly meaning it.

"And! I know you're shinning down on me from heaven! Like, so many friends we've lost along the way! And I know eventually we'll be together!" they all sang together in harmony.

"Together!" sang Erica, as the boys followed with "One sweet day!" "Picture a scene in heaven..."she sang.

The crowd then started to cheer loudly; as Erica, Benny, and Ethan paused for a few seconds and the music played on for bit until it was time to sing again.

"Although, the sun will never shine the same," came Rory's voice from behind them, as he walked up to them with Stella by his side, both also wearing headsets, he then took Erica's other hand in his as Stella held his other, "I'll always look to a brighter day!"

"Lord I know! When you lay me down to sleep," sang Stella's melodious voice as it rang out amongst the crowd, "You will always listen as I pray!" she sang in harmony with Rory, coming in near the end, with such meaning and passion in their words, both smiling while staring each other in the eyes lovingly.

Then they all broke out into the chorus line, singing in perfect harmony with each other and joyfully, as they let their emotions out through the song.

"And! I know you're shining down on me from heaven! Like, so many friends we've lost along the way! And I know eventually we'll be together!"

"Together!" sang Erica and Stella, matching each other perfectly. "One sweet day!" Ethan's, Benny's, and Rory's voices rang out afterwards.

And then suddenly the clouds that were blocking the sun, suddenly opened up and down shined the sun's warm rays upon the gathering of people there. Spreading it's warmth and happiness amongst everybody. As it hit the Lucifractor Monument, the purple orb seemed to radiate in a purple aura, but not it wasn't like the purple glow that once caused so much heartache, pain, fear, and destruction. But instead, a kind of glow that filled hearts with renewal, happiness, peace, and hope. Signaling a new beginning.

Mr. and Mrs. Jones, Mr. and Mrs. Keaner, Mrs. Morgan, Jane, Mrs. Weir, and even Jesse then all walked out onto stage to join the song.

"And! I know you're shinning down on me from heaven!" they all sang, as they began to sway from side to side, with their arms over the person next to them shoulders. "Like, so many friends we've lost along the way! And! I know eventually we'll be together!"

"Together!" sang Erica and Stella, raising their octave and putting their hearts into it. "One sweet day!" they sang, joining the group but raising their voices up and down with the boys together in harmony.

Then there was a pause as the music's melody continued to play for a bit and then Erica sang, as she looked Benny his sunglasses covered eyes. "Sorry. I never told you." she sang softly, as Benny quietly sang a "oooh" to follow. "All I, wanted to say." the two finished together slowly, as the melody began to die down.

As soon as they had finished, the crowd of people erupted into a roar of an applause for the group up on stage. They all looked at each other, some with watery eyes, as they smiled and then they all took a bow.

* * *

Unknown to them, up in the clouds; Sarah, her parents, and Mr. Morgan were all watching the very touching and heartwarming moment/performance from heaven. They all had huge smiles on their faces, as Sarah wiped a tear from her eye.

"They were right. Eventually we'll be together again. One sweet day." she spoke softly, as she just knew it was gonna be true, deep down in her heart.

* * *

**A/N- Thanks again to my fanfic buddy, for generously letting me take the final Author's Note.**

**AND GEEZ! DID SHE DO GOOD, OR WHAT?!**

**Fun Fact: I don't cry when I read sad books or sad movies. But this is the FIRST time someone actually make me shed a tear. A rare moment. Thank MBAV fan66 for that. You broke me, fanfic buddy. You broke me :'(**

**But yup. The bittersweet ending. Wasn't the song so appropriate for the moment? I loved this. This was wonderful. **

**Of course, I wouldn't have done it without the brain of my dearest fanfic buddy, MBAV fan66, and without her ideas and her contribution and time to this story, it just wouldn't have happen. Good stories don't happen in a snap or a blink. We actually been planning this since February. To be more specific, I had asked my fanfic buddy to do this with me on February 5th, an idea I randomly had, and then she and I brought it all together into a story. **

**I am getting this pretty lengthy, probably because this was my first [and hopefully not last] collaboration story, with anyone, actually. So I hope to do this again with anyone. Just throw me a PM, and I'll consider it ;) **

**But yup. Thanks for reading this. Took a lot of time, on our side. We thank the readers. **

**I, with a heavy heart, put 'complete' on this story, and bid you farewell until the next story. **

**TOBN, out!**

**In Fangs, We Trust**


End file.
